


The Immortal Pharaoh

by Thecrazydragonlady15



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Explosions, Lord Dragon Dick is here too, M/M, and there’s some sadness, battles, injuries, light blood mention
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-04
Updated: 2018-08-04
Packaged: 2019-06-21 16:06:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 32
Words: 62,918
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15561444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thecrazydragonlady15/pseuds/Thecrazydragonlady15
Summary: Yugi Muto didn’t expect that his summer vacation would take place in Egypt or involve finding the unopened tomb of an unnamed person, but it did. Yami didn’t expect to wake up in the 21st century but he did. Now they need to work together in order to prevent the darkness from returning to the world and send them all back to the dark ages.This work is a crossover with THE RELUCTANT GOD by Pamela F. Service.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi all and welcome to Dragon's dose of Big Bang mayhem part two! One Big Bang wasn't enough for me so of course I had to immediately join another as soon as I was done with the first one. 
> 
> A huge and special thank you goes out to tsukimilog for being my awesome responder! Check out the amazingly hard work that was put into the response because I will never stop screaming about it:   
> https://tsukimilog.tumblr.com/post/176630435043/read-from-right-to-left-japanese-reading
> 
> I would also like to thank beartime for being an amazing and oh so patient beta who got me through my darkest times. 
> 
> I will be updating three chapters a day starting today (Aug. 4th) and finishing on Aug. 14th. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

Yugi Muto sighed deeply to himself as he attempted to adjust his school jacket and shirt. He didn’t want either his grandfather or mother to worry; after all, it wasn’t exactly the first time he had ever had to deal with the schoolyard bullies. Both adults were observant. Yugi couldn’t doubt their intelligence. He just wasn’t sure how much they chose to acknowledge and worrying them was the last thing he ever wanted. Yugi finished his adjustments just as he rounded the corner. The game shop was a little out of date, decorated in bright, eighties-esque colors and designs, and its name, Kame Game, was scrawled across in the top in just as equally tacky and bright symbols. His shoulders slumped. Standing outside in his usual overalls, bandana, and a broom in hands stood Sugoroku Mutou.

Grandpa hummed to himself as he cleaned the sidewalk in front of the door. His body still showed evidence of his past. His hands were large and rough, his eyes sparkled with daring and intelligence. Yugi instantly perked up. He smiled, waving a hand, “Hey Grandpa!”

The broom stopped. Grandpa turned his head, smiling in return, “Yugi! Welcome home my boy. How as school?” Yugi ran a hand over his neck as he attempted to keep the brightness on his face.

“It was alright.” Yugi paused, “Is Mom home?”

“She just left for the store. I think she said something about needing eggs for dinner.” Yugi nodded, heading to the door.

“Let me go put this down and I’ll be down to help with the store.”

“Alright, I’ll finish here.” Yugi pulled the door open before walking quickly to the stairs, heading to his room to drop off his bag and change out of his uniform, before stopping by the kitchen for drink. He returned to the store about thirty minutes later.

Grandpa looked up from where he sat behind the game store’s counter, “Yugi, come here for a second.” He held up a piece of paper. He waved it a bit as Yugi did as asked, “I received a letter from my old friend Arthur. You know? The one I’ve told you about from my stories?” Yugi’s eyes lit up as he nodded eagerly. There had been a wide variety of stories shared during his youth which documented his grand adventures in archeology though Yugi wasn’t sure which stories were true or a bit elaborated. He’d never tell his grandpa that though. “Arthur” was a frequent character in those tales. Grandpa continued with, “Arthur says he’s doing well and, get this, he’s going on a new dig!” He handed the letter over to his grandson before propping himself against the counter, his arms folded in front of him. 

To Yugi’s surprise, upon opening the letter, he found it to be written with pretty clear Japanese characters. He had half expected an English or even Arabic letter from what he knew of the man.

“Apparently,” Grandpa eagerly said, “they’ve found a new set of tombs perfectly intact. Initial searches say that they might be lower-upper class tombs to book and if that’s the case, then the amount of knowledge would be astounding.”

“It sounds amazing Grandpa,” Yugi mused, still reading the letter. “What’s this part about the Smithsonian and Natural History Museums?” The older man beamed. 

“That’s the best part. Arthur got funding from not one, but two major museums! Which is why,” he nodded, taking back the letter as Yugi offered it, “he’s invited us to come and help out.” Yugi blinked.

“The both of us,” he screeched. Grandpa’s smile only grew wider.

“That’s right my boy! You and me.” Yugi’s heart started fluttering. His mind started moving just as quickly and he found himself only flapping his lips for a few minutes.

“Wh-what about school?”

“They’ve still got some work to do so the dig won’t actually start until this summer.”

“Mom….”

“Will use the chance to visit your father in America.”

“The shop….”

“Will be fine for a couple of months,” he assured him. Waving a hand around, Grandpa finished with, “Because we are so busy. Face it Yugi, you’re not going to be spending your summer locked in this building with the same old puzzles.” Grandpa winked. “It’s about time to try some new ones don’t you think?” This caught his attention.

“New ones?” Grandpa laughed.

“Caught your attention hmmm? You never know what we’ll come across but the whole thing will be a fabulous puzzle for us to try and figure out!” Yugi bit his bottom lip. Grandpa pushed himself away from the counter. He started to walk away but dropped over his shoulder, “But it you really don’t want to….”

“That’s not nice Grandpa,” Yugi whined, “You know I can’t pass up a good puzzle or challenge! I’ll go! I’ll go!” Grandpa chuckled and turned, reaching up to ruffle his hair. 

“That’s my boy,” he beamed. “I’ll be sure to let Arthur know that we’ll be coming.” He paused. “Oh, and by the way, his granddaughter is also going to be there and I’m sure the two of you will have a grand time.” Yugi blushed.

“Grandpa!”

The old man chuckled before disappearing to call his friend. Yugi sighed. He situated himself at the counter. The quiet of the store offered him to process what had just happened. His first dig! New puzzles! His mind began to wander and he dreamed of grand pyramids and kings and life in a time of the distant past. His heart began thudding hard in his chest and, in search of relief, he pushed himself away from the counter, reaching for a rag, before going around and cleaning the whole store. By the time he was done, Yugi found himself smiling widely.

He couldn’t wait!


	2. Chapter 2

The sun was blazing overhead; the skies were clear and Yugi found himself covering his forehead with his arm. How bright! More importantly, how hot! The summers in Japan could only dream of reaching such temperatures and the reflection of  the heat off the ground made the world around him hazy. He squinted in an attempt to see clearer. Suddenly, a wide brimmed hat was thrust upon his head from behind. He staggered. Yugi had to adjust the hat for his bangs but was grateful for the shade and he turned. Grandpa was standing behind him dressed to the nines as he imagined a true archaeologist would: khaki shirt and pants, boots, a safari hat, and a rather large back bag over his shoulders, which he adjusted a bit while smiling at him.

“You’re going to need that around here,” Grandpa told him. He motioned down the busy road. “And plenty of water.” Yugi straightened, adjusting his own bag.

“I promise to keep my canteen filled Grandpa.”

“The first rule to anything should be safety first,” Grandpa mused as he started looking around. People hustled and bustled about, carrying their luggage, moving about like a sea of confusion as some looked for a way away from the airport, others offering those ways. Grandpa smiled as his eyes landed on someone. This stranger was out of place. The man who approached them was tall, wearing a white collared shirt that accented his skin and, surprisingly, off-white hair beautifully; his eyes were sharp but their eloquence was not dimmed by the smile on his face.

He stopped just short of them, “Mr. Muto and Mr. Muto?” He bowed his head a bit. “My name is Malik Ishtar. I’m here to take you back to the museum.” He offered a hand and Grandpa tilted his hat back a bit as he reached out with his own.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you.” They released and Malik turned to Yugi. The Egyptian’s eyes went wide but he accepted the offered appendage and Yugi smiled pleasantly though he was confused by his expression. Grandpa didn’t notice. He continued, “I thought the director of Foreign Affairs was going to meet us….”

“Isis really wanted to,” Malik assured him, “However, she got caught up with some last minute work to ensure that everything is ready for the dig to officially start.” He turned a bit to the side, holding out a hand as he motioned down the hazy sidewalk. “Shall we? The car is this way.” The two of them adjusted their bags and grabbed the rest of their luggage and followed him. A blast of hot air hit them in the face, causing Yugi to squint, unused to the assault that was currently happening to his face. Malik lead them a little ways forward. He stopped them at a nondescript black car where another Egyptian, an even taller man with hair only in a certain spot on the back of his head, tied into a ponytail, waited for them. Yugi had to remember that it was rude to stare since half of this  man’s face was tattooed. It was fascinating. He bowed to the three of them. Malik introduced him, “This is Rishid, my brother and Isis’s assistant.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you,” he greeted. “Allow me to help you with your bags.” The three of them moved to the trunk of the car. Once their gear was situated, all four of them climbed into the vehicle. They took off with Rishid at the wheel.

Yugi sighed in relief as the air hit him in the face. Already he was sweating. It rolled down his back uncomfortably, pooling at the spot of his lower back. Grandpa huffed and wiped his forehead with the back of his arm, “My, this heat is a little more intense than I remember.” Yugi chuckled.

“It probably had something to do with your age,” he teased. Grandpa narrowed his eyes at him.

“And just what are you implying there Yugi?” Yugi whistled and looked away. Grandpa reached over and poked him a bit before he started laughing and swatted his hand away. Malik cleared his throat. Yugi, at least, immediately clammed up, dropping his eyes to his knees and hiding his hands there, suddenly abashed at their behavior in front of a stranger that he completely forgot was there. Malik said nothing on it though.

Instead, he said to Grandpa, “I’m sure the two of you are rather tired from your ride.” Yugi turned to look out the window.  “Isis will be rather busy especially with the final dig coming up so very quickly. Doctor Hopkins and his granddaughter have already been here a month and I’m sure that they’re most eager to see the two of you.”

“It’ll be nice to see Arthur again,” Grandpa mused, “and to meet his granddaughter. The last time I saw him, he wouldn’t stop talking about how his son was just on the verge of getting married.” He chuckled. “Then again, that was about the same time I just received word that I was going to be a grandpa. I’m sure we sounded like a couple of old men at the bar that night but that right after we had just finished excavating our most recent find of the time which was… hmmm… I want to say it was one of the smaller ones but for the life of me, I can’t remember which one it was. We did find some pretty good, in-tact pottery though which shared some interesting information of lower life within in the Nile region.” He stopped, furrowing his brow as he tried to remember but simply shrugged when he couldn’t. Malik smiled at him.

“Your and Doctor Hopkins’s searches have become rather well known amongst the historical society here in Egypt,” he confirmed. Something creeped along Yugi’s skin. He turned and, to his amazement, found Malik staring at him oddly. Despite the heat, a shiver shot down his spine. He couldn’t help but feel that Malik’s next words were a bit ominous, “We are most eager to see how this excavation goes.”

*****

The front of the Egyptian Museum was bright and inviting in the bright sunlight. It gave off an air of elegance. Ancient, tattered statues decorated the lawn area around a large, square fountain. The faded red bricks of the building stood out against the blue of the sky. White stone made up some of the accents, including two statue reliefs of ancient people up high. A dark oaken door stood as the portal to the past. Yugi couldn’t help but to take a sharp, impressed breath; it was more impressive than the museum in Domino that’s for sure. People, like at the airport, moved around them, stopping and staring, pointing, and taking pictures. It was a bit cheesy but slightly charming in its own right, maybe an idea he simply had because he could understand the excitement. Malik ignored them all. He walked by the tourist without so much as a glance and to the door, followed by Rishid, as he made his way to the door.

“Come on Yugi,” Grandpa called. “You’ll get a chance to look shortly.”

“This place is amazing,” Yugi breathed as he caught up. Grandpa nodded.

“Yes, it is. Here and in museums all over the world, we are slowly learning about the history of human kind and preserving what would otherwise disappear without our efforts.”

“Disappear?”

“Time is rather cruel Yugi and nature does not care how great one place is, was, or could be; all that it cares about is moving forward and if we aren’t careful, we could be wiped away just as easily.”

Yugi shivered, “Gee Grandpa, could you be any deeper or any more depressing?” He laughed, clapping his grandson on the shoulder as they made their way inside.

“Fear not. It’ll be an extremely long time before any of that happens.”

“I hope you’re right.”

“Mr. Mutos,” Malik called. He was standing near the reception desk with Rishid who was talking with a friendly looking young woman. Rishid nodded as they approached. Malik told them, “It looks like Isis is out of her meeting. She and Doctor Hopkins are waiting for us in her office.” He motioned to a side door. “We’ll take the staff entrance to get there.” Rishid said farewell to the receptionist and then lead them through the door. Several people of the staff greeted the two familiar faces and they returned it but they didn’t stop. Isis’s office was at the end of the hallway with golden Arabic words scrawled across it and the English translated _Director of Foreign Affairs_ underneath it. Rishid knocked.

A gentle, “Come in,” came from the other side. He held the door open for the three of them with a slight bow. Grandpa and Yugi thanked him as they entered.

The room was painted a softer shade of red than the stone color on the outside of the building. The floors were white marble and there was a matching white trim near it and the ceiling. There were two large windows that looked out to the courtyard below, allowing in enough natural lighting that the use of electricity seemed pointless. A desk with a computer and some personal decorations, a picture of Rishid, Malik, and a girl from when they were younger, as well as a small obelisk, a fancy pen, and a name plate with the Arabic and English printed across it sat in front of the window. In front of the desk was a sitting area. It had a couch and matching seat with a small coffee table between them. Two people stood upon their entry.

The first was a young woman. She was clearly older than Malik but younger than Rishid. This did nothing to dull the air of grace or power she had around her; neither of the men could dream of matching it in their life time. She wore a loose, tan colored tunic with a band of black boxes around her shoulders, a circlet wound around her head, meeting in the center where there resided a green gem.

“Greetings,” she started, offering a hand to Grandpa, “I am Isis Ishtar. It’s a pleasure to finally meet the legendary Mr. Muto in person.” Grandpa took her hand gently.

“It’s a pleasure my dear. Allow me to introduce my grandson Yugi,” he returned, pushing the boy forward. Isis’s eyes, like Malik’s had, went wide. Another shiver went down Yugi’s spine but he swallowed hard and offered his hand.

“Nice to meet you,” Yugi stuttered out.

She didn’t take it.

Instead, Isis closed her eyes and smiled, “It must be fate.” Both Mutos blinked but, before they could ask, Malik and Rishid moved around them and into the room. The second person who had also stood was now smiling brighter than ever and clearly eager to say something. Grandpa’s face lit up.

“Arthur,” he cheered.

“Sugoroku!” The two men clapped each other’s shoulders and shook hands. “It’s been ages my old friend. How have you been getting on?”

“As well as one can expect,” Grandpa returned. “Got a bit of a heart problem but running a game shop thankfully is a low-risk job. No more treasure hunting for me.” Hopkins laughed.

“The same old Sugoroku. Always obsessed with puzzles and games.” Grandpa tisked.

“Aren’t you one for talking! Here we are, yet again, in the middle of the Egyptian desert looking for another tomb because of _your_ research.” The other man’s eyes lit up suddenly.

“That we are,” Hopkins mused, looking over at Yugi. “My word Sugoroku! He looks exactly like you did when you were younger.” Grandpa nodded.

“This is Yugi. Yugi, this is the Doctor Hopkins I’ve told you about.” Yugi nodded and held out his hand again. This time, it was taken.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you Doctor Hopkins. Grandpa’s told me a lot of stories about the digs the two of you went on.”

“I hope only good things,” Hopkins laughed. “Goodness knows that the two of us got into our share of trouble.” He chuckled again but turned a bit to expose the couch behind him. Sitting there was a small, blonde-haired girl whose face was, as Yugi could only describe it as, in “resting bitch-mode.” She didn’t look too pleased to see them. However, her glare got worse when it landed on him and he jerked a bit in surprise. Hopkins motioned to her, “Come her sweetheart.”

Her glared didn’t disappear but she stood and came to her grandfather. Hopkins put an arm around her shoulder, “This is my granddaughter Rebecca. She’s been a help to me before on several of my digs and, with her parents indisposed right now, they agreed to let her help again.” She bowed her to the two of them but said nothing.

Isis cleared her throat, “Now that the introductions are done, I would like to discuss the final preparations for the dig.”

“Excellent idea,” Arthur agreed, “The sooner we get these finalized, the sooner we can move out.” She nodded.

“Of course, let’s get to it,” Grandpa said. Yugi rubbed the back of his neck. He didn’t want to admit it but something felt weird in his gut about this whole affair.

Now, he wasn’t really sure how excited he was to be here anymore.


	3. Chapter 3

Atem sighed heavily, his feet hanging over the edge of the small pond that he currently sat next to, tiny ripples moving across the otherwise smooth surface with the motion. This place was an oasis in the desert. Water flowed freely in from the Nile, allowing for all sorts of colorful plants to thrive here. The royal garden always seemed to help ease his worries. Atem took a breath. As a prince of Egypt, he had always been tied to the palace and, for as long as he could remember, he had been instructed in various political matters, fit of one who would help lead the kingdom. It was destiny. It was _duty_. He did not enjoy the idea of this. Atem was still young and there was so much of this world he hadn’t seen. Duty meant being here forever.

It had been a long week. It certainly wasn’t getting any shorter. His mentor, Siamun Muran, was running him ragged with his language lessons; already he had had to master the languages of the further north, Greek and Latin, but now his lessons were delving deeply into Sumerian and those further East.

The noose was tightening. He could feel it and how he so desperately he wanted to tear it off.

Suddenly, a set of hands pushed him from behind. Atem let out a surprised yelp, landing in the water with a splash. He floundered for a few seconds before righting himself, panting. His golden bangs now covered his eyes and he reached up, moving them out of the way. Glaring up, he found two people laughing like maniacs at the sight before them: the first was a young man who was identical to him in every way except for maybe the face that his bangs were not so wild and his eyes not so sharp or harsh. The second was a brown-haired girl with dark, tanned-colored skin. Heba and Mana. Two of his best friends in the whole world. Not that he could ever get rid of Heba, they were, after all, twins and bound by destiny to each other for all eternity. Further behind them, were two older boys, both looking a bit exasperated with the whole affair. One was his cousin Set, a tall, lanky boy who was loyal and Atem was sure he would trust with his life. The other was just as loyal but more of a friend than his cousin, Mahad, who had the unfortunate duty of watching after their antics.

Like Heba and Mana pushing him into the pond.

Mahad ran a hand through his light brown bangs. “Really you two,” he lectured, “You had to push him in? We’ve got lessons soon and now he’s all wet!”

“Oh lighten up Mahad,” Mana returned. “We’re only just playing.”

“He can change,” Heba added. Atem narrowed his eyes at the two of them and, without a word, held out his hands, a silent demand for assistance. The two offered it. The thing that they had forgotten though was that Atem was just a bit stronger than either of them. Instead of helping to pull him out, they both let out a cry as they fell in as well. Mahad started to say something but froze when he realized it was too late. The two of them spluttered for a second before righting themselves. All three shared a look. Then they laughed. Heba stood first.

“Alright, you win Atem,” Heba conceded. Atem smirked until Heba reached down, scooped a handful of water, and flung it at him. “Take this!” Mana covered her face with her arm.

“Hey! No fair! I’m on your side Heba!”

Atem laughed, “There are no sides anymore. Brace yourselves!”

An all-out water war began between the three of them, causing a giggle to erupt from each of them as they continued splashing water everywhere. Mahad got splashed at one point which set him to mutter a spell angrily that made some water rise up into a bubble that he directed to over their heads before he waved a hand, letting it drop over them. The fight was easily over.

Or not.

Mana immediately pouted and retaliated with a spell of her own. However, hers was not as secure as Mahad’s and it broke once out of the water very short of her target. She pouted again. Heba patted her shoulder, “Don’t let it get you down Mana. I’m sure you’ll be a great magician one day.”

“She certainly will,” a deep voice interrupted. “If she attends her lessons though.”  Every one of them froze except for Set who merely sighed, pushing himself off the wall he was leaning on. The three in the pond scrambled out. Their clothes dripped, causing the stone under their feet to darken. The man who had spoken was a tall man with a beard and kind eyes, his head was covered with a tan cloth that hung loosely to his shoulders, secured in place with a thin golden circlet which was the lesser of his jewelry. The three of them bowed their heads. Akhenamkhanen was not just Atem and Heba’s father; he was a god incarnate, the head of Egypt itself, blessed to rule the Nile and all its fertile bounty. Behind him, stood his own twin and Set’s father, Akhenaden, as well as Atem’s teacher Siamun. Akhenaden crossed his arms.

“Look at the three of you!” The pharaoh raised a hand to stop him.

“Calm yourself my dear brother,” he soothed. “ I do recall the two of us being just as troublesome at their age.” He humphed.

“Yes, when we had been six years. Not seventeen.” The two boys especially flinched. Their uncle turned on them again, “And you, Heba, are to be the next pharaoh! You must attend to your trainings properly. The tutors are waiting for you arrival.” Heba nodded, his face changing instantly.

“Yes, Uncle.” Heba bowed his head to his father, “Forgive me father.” Akhenamkhanen sighed, placing his hands on his shoulders. Heba looked up a bit.

“He is right. You are to lead Egypt. You must be able to stand on your own." Heba nodded. The pharaoh smiled. He turned to face Atem who wasn't looking at any of them, choosing instead to occupy his time by staring at the now lazy water of the pond behind them. Akhenamkhanen's expression didn't change. He gently placed a hand on his second son's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze, "And he will need help to do that. Just as I have help to keep this country at peace." Atem dropped his head.

“Yes, father.” Akhenamkhanen gave him a gentle squeeze. As he let go, a cough racked his body and the two behind him rushed forward.

Siamun frowned, looking at the children worriedly, "You should head to your lessons. Isis, Shada, and Karim will meet you in the throne room Prince Heba for your training.” To Atem, "I'll be with you shortly. We will begin your training on Sumerian as soon as the king is settled." The children bowed their heads as the pharaoh attempted to weakly straighten himself again, reassuring them with a smile before he was shuffled off to his room to rest. Meanwhile, Heba came up, softly taking Atem's hand. He only stared straight ahead, trying to be the strength both of them needed in that moment.

He wasn't sure he was succeeding.

"Father is ill," Heba whispered. Atem nodded his head. The older of them squeezed his hand, a bit of a shake in it. "I'm scared Atem."

"Don't be," he soothed. "Father will be alright."

He took in a shaky breath, "Our duty is coming soon."

"I like not the smell of this duty," Atem teased, smirking at him. "I'm glad it's you and not me in the long run." Heba chuckled.

"Someone must." A pause. "Sooner rather than later." He released his hand, smiling now at Mana, Mahad, and Set as he skipped forward, looking back at all of them. "Shall we go then? Our lessons are beginning shortly." The three of them nodded before following Heba, leaving Atem there to frown before he too finally moved to go to his lessons.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I need to post these chapters before I forget. I'm trying to multi-task by being a real adult while managing one of my bills. It's so mind-numbingly boring.

Siamun cleared his throat which stopped Atem in his tracks, forcing him to look up from the stone tablet he was reading from. He was standing, facing out the narrow window that pointed out to the royal courtyard where there seemed to be coming a rather loud series of sounds and whatever it was, held his attention for some time before Siamun turned to smile at his pupil, "Your reading has improved greatly Prince Atem. It is certain that you will be a good advisor to your brother once he has taken the throne." Atem flushed a bit. Whether from the praise or the idea of duty again, he wasn't sure. He did bow his head though.

"Thank you master." Siamun turned from the window.

His hands remained behind his back as he continued with, "Yes, a good advisor is talented in many skills but the ability to communicate is possibly one of the most important; it could easily be the difference between peace and war, famine and aid. A good king doesn't think by himself. He also listens and your voice will be certainly appreciated." He paused, eyes shifting to the window. A mischievous smile crossed his face. Siamun continued with, "I do believe it is time to put your training to practical use." He dropped his hands.

Atem leaned his head to the side, "Practical use?" Siamun nodded. He grabbed for his hat, a tall purple thing with the Millennium eye symbol of his father's emblazoned on the front, as he lead the young prince from the room. He also wrapped a cloth across his mouth, effectively hiding most of his face. Atem followed in his steps.

"Practical use," he repeated, "Do you recall what today is?" The young man squinted in confusion.

"Today is... Isn't today the day that my father is greeting the Kushite emissaries?" Siamun nodded.

"Exactly my dear boy," he beamed. "Your memory is rather good. We will use today as a chance for you to practice your Kushite and see the inner workings of greeting such parties can further aid in the development of the country."

Atem nodded even though, in the back of his mind, there was more than a little hesitation. It was as if there was a chain slowly wrapping itself around his throat; in all honesty, the damn thing had always been there but as the years wore on, it just became tighter and tighter. Now he could feel it, the chain of "duty" threatening to end his life before he even had a chance to live it. Atem wasn't one for duty. Not like this at least and not without his consent.

That's why he had a plan.

The large chambered room they walked into was bright and sunny. It was long with intricate designs painted on the walls around by only the best artisans of the nation. In the middle of the room was a raised platform where a lone throne sat; it was, however, large enough for multiple people to occupy the space which is where Atem found himself staring at as he and Siamun took a place off to the right hand side and a little behind it. Out of sight as advisors should be.

His father sat regally on the throne, face forward and looking stern. He had been fitted into his most expensive jewels and he wore his nemes crown for the event. Next to him was Heba. His twin was wearing more golden jewelry and the circlet which marked him as the heir to the throne, a long purple cape hung from his shoulders, he stood straight, looking as serious as he could for the occasion. Atem beamed. Despite his misgivings, he was absolutely proud of how regal he looked.

Siamun leaned closer to him. "I want you to listen carefully to what is said here. We will practice transcribing it once this event is complete?" Atem nodded. He turned to face the large archway where there appeared several people; the guards that lined the way to the pharaoh’s throne did not flinch but they did straighten just a bit more at the appearance of the new people.

There was a rather large party that came in. All were dressed appropriately for the weather and travel: plain clothes that covered most of their bodies, faces covered with clothes except for their eyes, and sandals that were sturdy but worn. The one in front removed his face cover. He bowed and as he came back up, Atem was able to see that he was a rather strong-faced man with a bit of a beard and dark skin. He stared at Akhenamkhanen. The pharaoh raised a hand in greeting and lowered it, effectively indicating that he wished for the party to approach. The man turned and spoke to them. Together, they walked forward. In their possession were many goods: large chests of gold and jewels, fine fabrics, grains, and several animals.

Now animals were not unusual for a party to bring in offerings that included animals but this time, there was no ignoring them. The first was a monkey. It was small and brown but it was loud, chattering away on its master's shoulder despite the exasperated man's best attempts to silence it. The other was a large cat with brownish fur outlined with spots, a Jaguar, which stalked next to its owner, its large mouth opened and panting as it came closer to the throne. The monkey continued to chatter. Before the owner could stop it, the foolish creature jumped down, skipped over to said cat, and reached up to _slap_ it across the face.

The cat let out a wild cry, raising back on its two hind legs, causing the leash that it was held on to snap. The handlers cried out. The monkey took off, realizing that maybe standing so close to the killing creature you've angered, was not a wise idea, screaming and chattering as he made for the platform.

Atem's face fell.

The monkey ran straight for Heba. He opened his arms, catching the frightened creature who wiggled out of them and up onto his shoulders, both of them looking up in just enough time to see the jaguar coming for them.

Atem didn't hesitate.

He bolted from his place on the right, easily clearing the top of the steps to land himself in front of his brother, turning so that his body now covered his. He closed his eyes.

_So much for duty._

He waited patiently for the sting of death to hit him. A sense of peace coursed through him at the last second and he couldn't help but wonder if this is what knowing you were destined for the afterlife felt like for those who had passed. It was an odd sensation.

Thankfully, he didn't have to answer that question. Atem curled in tighter on himself, which in turn caused Heba to bend just a bit more as well. Only, instead of claws meeting his back, he was meet by cloth and he looked back, opening one eye enough to find Siamun there. He had removed his face cloth, his face set with determination as he raised up the Millennium Key from around his neck. The device was gold in nature. It glinted in the bright sun that filled the room as he called out, "Head my command my monster of darkness! Come forth to protect your master!"

The room seemed to darken for a second. A bolt of lightning crashed to the ground between him and the cat but the explosion settled quickly, leaving behind a large blue creature which uncurled from itself, spreading its wings. Its muzzle was large with sharp eyes that opened wide. It roared. The cat, that had at first been approaching without hesitation, skidded to a stop before letting out a yap and turned to run back to its owner, ducking down behind his knees, ears flat and tail tucked. Siamun nodded. The dragon faded from this world. All was quiet for a few minutes before the emissary dropped to his knees, followed by the rest of his party, as he spoke quickly in Kushite.

Siamun straightened himself and turned to face the pharaoh. He translated for him, "He begs for your forgiveness your majesty. For such a scene to occur during such an important meeting, he has failed has a representative of the Kush Empire and will accept any punishment you deem worthy." Atem released Heba, quickly looking his brother over for injury. Heba smiled wearily at him before straightening as well. Neither boy moved from their spot until Akhenamkhanen raised a hand, silencing the room. He smiled softly at the man who still hadn't raised his face from the ground; his edges seemed to shake despite how much he tried to control his fear.

Looking at Siamun, the pharaoh spoke, "Siamun, if you please." The man bowed his head. The room once more fell silent as he declared, "Please, rise friend. There is nothing to apologize for. No one has been hurt this day and I all that I ask is that Kush continues to be an ally for Egypt so this time of peace may continue for years to come."

Siamun translated. The man's head shot up so fast, shocked by the moment, and he was bewildered for a second before he smiled, relieved that he hadn't somehow ignited war with the mighty Egyptian kingdom. He turned and quickly ordered for the animals to be removed. The jaguar was retied to its leash and the man who owned the monkey, approached Heba hesitantly, face down until he held out his hands for the animal to return. Heba only smiled as he straightened his arm, allowing for it to jump back to him. He bowed once more before scurrying away. Atem released a sigh of relief. Akhenamkhanen faced the two of them, "My sons, you have had a harrowing experience. Return to your room to rest for now. Siamun, if you please." The older man bowed in respect before ushering the two boys out of the room. Once clear, Atem allowed his shoulders to slump and he reached for Heba's hand. Heba took it, squeezing.

"Thank you Atem," the prince smiled. Atem returned the expression.

"You need to be more careful," he chided lightly, "What will Egypt do if you aren't there to lead it?" Heba chuckled.

"You'd be there of course."

"You are the one who is destined to lead Egypt. I'm not too sure the gods would be pleased by someone like me."

"You sell yourself too short my brother," Heba smirked, pinching his cheek. Atem muttered angrily until he released it so he could cover it with his own hand. Heba laughed. He released Atem's hand and skipped forward. He started to follow until a hand caught his shoulder. Siamun had stopped him.

"Prince Heba," he called. "Would you mind going ahead? I need to speak to Prince Atem about our lessons." Heba hesitated but he trusted Siamun enough to nod his head, waving to the two of them before disappearing off down the corridor. Once out of sight, the advisor grabbed Atem a bit more roughly, turning him to face him and the prince was shocked by the expression he faced. Siamun squeezed his shoulders.

"You need to be more careful Prince Atem. Your life is just as important to Egypt as much as your brother's." Atem blinked. He released him as he moved past him. "We all have our duties."

Something clicked in the prince’s mind. Cold shot through him as he clenched his fits, putting two and two together, “You weren’t saving Heba. You were protecting me.” Siamun released him. He started to walk away, back to the throne room, as Atem shouted, “Why?  Heba is the crown prince. He will be the one to guide Egypt.” Siamun stopped.

Without turning, he repeated, “We all have our duties; mine was not to save Heba but you.” He left. Atem couldn’t stop the cold coursing through him; Siamun’s words haunted him and he squeezed his fists until the nails finally cut his palms. Tiny trickles of blood flowed down his skin, dripping to the ground.

Duty was closing in. It was going to be now or never and he decided that duty would not chain him just yet.


	5. Chapter 5

Yugi stretched himself as he walked out of the tent. A shiver racked through his spine; even though he had been highly prepared for the overheated daylight hours, he wasn't prepared for how cold the nights became. It was nice to get out though. They had spent the last several weeks in camp, digging in the area a stone's throw away from his work space, but it wasn't all beauty and perfection in the camp. For example, Doctor Hopkins' granddaughter Rebecca. At first, the young blonde child treated him like a nuisance. She snapped at every little thing he did wrong, especially when it came to cataloguing all of the information related to the dig: the exact place and measurements of where each tiny piece of pottery was discovered, the way they were dusted and cleaned, and so on. Yugi had been irritated with her behavior at first. That was, until about a week and half after the dig started. He had been sitting in the cataloguing tent, looking at some of the pieces of pottery, before he realized that it was just one giant puzzle he was staring at and, without thinking, he began to put them together. It came together rather quickly. He held up a small piece to the lamp to get a better view.

"What in the world are you doing? You're going to mess up the data!" He jerked, nearly dropping the shard he held, turning to find Rebecca glaring at him, hands on her hips as she tapped her foot in clear frustration. He looked abashed. She stomped towards him. She started to snatch the piece from his hand until she spotted the puzzle that he was working on. Her eyes went wide. She pushed around him to get a closer look, "Did you... Did you do this?"

"I- I was curious," he stuttered out. Licking his lips, he continued with, "It looked like a puzzle and I love puzzles so I couldn't resist...."

Rebecca raised a hand to silence him. "This is... brilliant," she slowly stated. "This looks like the beginnings of a... statue of some kind." She moved around, trying to see it from all sides without touching. Once her scrutiny was passed, she hummed, "Have you used anything to hold it together?" Yugi shook his head. She began moving around the tent, gathering various odds and ends that were stored on the shelves there, before she sat them in front of him. "Move over. I'm going to show you how to apply both the mesh and the Pollyfilla. The general rule for structural integrity is that a shard has to have to two points of contact in order to be secured. Start with the mesh and use this cyclododecane in these cracks...." Yugi's head spun a bit but he nodded, keeping up with the impromptu lesson he was receiving on how to rebuild and structure the pottery. They spent all night going over his new information. The next few days were filled with them doing the same lessons until she felt confident enough to leave him to his own devices. It took him three weeks to piece what he had had back together. Yugi felt rather accomplished. Rebecca grew more impressed the more he completed. Having warmed up to him, she presented him with his next assignment. He felt pleased by this; especially because her words were no longer sharp or to the point.

Malik got an absolute kick out of the change.

Yugi had been squinting at a particular shard he just couldn't seem to figure out. Malik was sitting behind him on one of his rare visits. He was looking at a book or magazine, Yugi wasn't sure, but he raised his eyes from it when Rebecca walked in, speaking to Yugi in a soft manner about finding another set of pieces they thought belong to another statue and they were wondering if he could put this one together as well. He nodded and said he would start as soon as he finished with the bowl he had been given. She nodded, a pleasant smile crossed her face before she left them alone. Silence. Then Malik let out a loud laugh which startled Yugi who turned, surprised.

Malik had a hand on his forehead. Tears were streaming out the corner of his eyes as he gasped out, “Oh man. I think I’m going to show up for this show more often!” He leaned forward to stare Yugi in the face. Yugi blushed. “You do realize she was flirting with you right?” Yugi sputtered.

"Wh-what?" Malik started laughing again.

"You seriously missed that? She was flirting!"

"No, she wasn't," he scoffed. "She was only here on business." Malik blinked.

"For someone who's so brilliant when it comes to piecing together these boring clay pieces, you're a complete dud when it comes to the ladies right?" Yugi’s blush turned brighter.

"So what if I am?" Malik rolled his eyes.

"You are never going to get a girlfriend like that." Yugi bit his lips and turned back to his work; he didn’t bother to voice the question of whether or not he was even interested in girls. He was still young. His options could always be explored. Malik moved closer. He poked Yugi in the cheek and this only set Yugi to pouting. "I could help you know. Help you and her..."

"I'm not interested!" Malik blinked. Yugi stood up then, placing the shard on the table, before he simply left. He wandered into the Egyptian night. The sand seemed to move out of his way but he didn't slip. A soft breeze pushed his bangs out of his face and he hugged himself a bit for warmth until it stopped. He kept moving forward.

The dig wasn't too far from a valley where two large rocky face cliffs rose up on either side. He climbed up a bit. His head pounded a bit from the exchange and he sighed as he reached the top, sitting on an exposed boulder. The view was breath taking; the sand seemed to sparkle in the light of the full moon and a smile found its ways to his lips. Who would have imagined that his summer would have spent like this? Wait until he got back and told Anzu all about it.

He paused. If Anzu was even going to speak to him. While they had been friends for years, it only seemed that in the most recent, she had been growing distant from him. It was not surprising to him that she had grown into her own in high school, becoming a rather mature and beautiful young woman with a world confidence to match it. She wasn't particularly cold with him but neither had they been hanging out like they used to. Maybe he could use this as an excuse to speak to her again. He scoffed.

"Anzu's not that shallow," he chided to no one in particular. "Besides, you're small... and withdrawn... and into games more than people...." He stopped. In frustration, he ran his hands through his hair rapidly while letting out a scream.

What kind of life was this!

He groaned. Not much of one if it was to be considered. He smacked his cheeks with his hands. No, no, no! He wasn't going to start feeling even sorrier for himself right now. He was having a better summer than he had originally planned for and he wasn't going to let some dark thoughts from stopping that.

Still... back home... it would be nice if he had even just one really good friend he could turn to.

Yugi sighed, "Who am I kidding? The way I currently am is just going to cause more trouble..." A gentle breeze rushed through the valley, ruffling his hair. He shivered a bit.

A loud noise somewhere further into valley caught his attention, sending the hair on his neck on end. His curious nature got the better of him and he found himself climbing further into the valley, up higher just to be safe. This was some straight out of _Tomb Raider_ adventure. The noises had softened a bit but the closer he got to their source, the steadier they became in volume until Yugi found himself staring over the edge of a rise easily some twenty to thirty feet above where the noises were originating from. In the dusty night time, he could easily make out what looked like military grade trucks and... yikes. Some of the weapons in the hands of some of those guys looked really serious. He ducked down behind a boulder to see if he could continue to get a better look.

Most of the people where men, that much he could tell. He swallowed hard. Whatever was going on here, he wasn't certain it was legal nor safe. A Jeep suddenly appeared from the other end of the valley, coming from the opposite side of where their dig was. It stopped short of where the bigger trucks were. Someone climbed out of the driver seat and went around to the passenger side where Yugi could see a tall man with long white hair, some covering half of his face, appear from where the door opened. He was wearing a red suit and all he could was wonder: how the hell was he currently not dying?

Another man approached him. He looked like a local and he wrung his hands. Yugi could only here snippets of their conversations, thankfully in English, but his face paled when he caught the words "tomb," "finding," and "explosives."

They were going to blow something up? Here in the valley? He swallowed hard. Moving to see better over his hiding spot, his foot slipped and a couple of rocks fell, tumbling down the craggy rock face with near deafening thuds. Yugi ducked down and hoped they weren't heard. His hopes were dashed though when he heard someone shouting orders and, in a panic, he looked around. Their running footsteps sounded so loud. Yugi scrambled towards the solid rock wall, looking for anywhere to hide. Relief flooded through him when he found a cave hidden by more boulders. It was hard to spot. The shouts grew louder and a light swept across the area. Yugi gasped softly and he scrambled inside to safety. A couple of armed guards appeared where he had once been. Yugi’s eyes darted between the entrance and rest of the cave before deciding that he was far too close to them for comfort. He crawled back a few feet before climbing to his feet. Yugi ran.

He must have easily been about halfway back into the cave when there suddenly came a rumbling. He stopped, trying to stay balanced.

His face paled.

No way... they actually....!

The explosion must have been too large as it rocked the whole valley. Rocks began to tumble from the ceiling, covering the ground in the places where he had been standing. Fear coursed through his system.

He was going to be buried alive!


	6. Chapter 6

Nearly a week after the incident with Kush, Atem was wide awake. He and Heba were sleeping on the roof to their shared room, something they had done for years. Heba stayed peaceful next to him. Atem smiled softly at him, relishing in the peace that seemed to blanket itself around the two of them. He knew though that this wouldn't last. There was no helping it after all. He had overheard Siamun and a couple of the other advisors speaking about his father's illness. It was getting worse and even with the use of the Millennium Items, there didn't seem to be any type of cure they could find.

Atem had no choice. He had to act today. He had carefully been studying the guard routes; with the rising of the morning sun, there would be a changing of them that would result in a gap of time where no one could stop him.

 It was time to go.

 Time to live his life before the chain of duty finally had its hands on him.

Atem silently moved from his brother's side. Heba mumbled and rolled over but did not otherwise wake. Atem released his breathe. He dropped back to the ground, making sure to keep his sandals off so that he made no sound as he moved back through the room; he went straight to their bed where he pulled out a bag he had already packed for the big day. He also pulled out a water skin which he filled from the pond nearby. Once done, he packed it in with the rest of his things. He took one final look at the room. Before he left, he was sure to leave a peace of rolled up papyrus for his brother. The farewell he was too scared to give because he knew that Heba would have stopped him.

And he didn't know if he would have had the strength to fight him.

 There was a story they used to share with each other, about a hero from the North that went on grand adventures, saving countless cities from various troubles. He smirked. He hoped that mentioning said character would send the impending search North for him. His plans were to head South, to the lower parts of the country. It was only a matter of time, after all, before they did send one. He smirked wirily. Would anyone really be fooled? Atem couldn’t be sure but he had to try.

What he did know was that there was no way he could just waltz out of the palace with his hair completely exposed as it was. Even if one hadn't seen either of the royal heirs, there was no dismissing their tri-colored spikes. His only solution was to cover it with a simple head cloth held secure by an equally simple circlet. It would serve for his purposes. Atem, once ready, hoisted the bag over one of his shoulders and climbed back up to the roof. He looked once more at his brother before quietly tiptoeing to the edge of the building, looking for any guards in both directions before he jumped to a lower wall a few feet away. By walking along it, he was able to make his way to the larger outer wall where he had to pause as he heard the last of the guards clear the area to begin switching. It was only in the silence did he use a ladder he had placed in a shadowy corner a couple of weeks prior; he was mighty glad that it hadn't been questioned or removed . He propped it up. His heart was pounding with each step that he took, leading himself higher and higher until he cleared the top of the wall. He gauged the distance to the ground. Thankfully, there was a smaller hut beside it that he could use to drop safely to the sand below. He did, somehow without twisting either of his ankles or breaking a bone.

Energy flushed through his system.

 Free.

 Atem was free.

 Free of duty. Free of title. _Free_.

He couldn't keep the goofy grin off of his face as he strolled down the street. The further he got from the palace, the more crowded the living quarters became and they were certainly rougher, but he wasn't intimidated. If anything, it was thrilling.

Someone suddenly caught him by the shoulder. He spun, pulling out of the grasps. The man behind him wore only a loin cloth and there was definitely a deep smell of alcohol spewing off of him, causing Atem to gag. The man eyed him. The prince didn't like the smirk he was giving him, "Hey boy. Where's your dad? Aren't you a little young to be out this late."

"What do you want," he snapped. The man snickered. He grabbed at him again, this time reaching for the top of his outfit and, getting hold of it, pulled him up off of his feet.

 "I think I'll take whatever is in that pack of yours kid." Atem's face paled. The man reached for it but he kicked out, his foot effectively connecting with the man's midsection. Both of them dropped. Atem scrambled to his feet. The man wasn't too far behind. He reached up. Rough hands grabbed to catch his ankle which nearly sent him back to the ground but he froze, not pulling away to keep his balance. The man growled. Thinking fast, he figured he had no choice, and so he reached into his pack, pulling out a small coin purse that he threw off in a different direction. The drunkard saw it and released him. Atem didn't hang around. He ran.

 He ran hard and long until he was clear of the street, of the village, and out into the Egyptian sands.

*****

Atem had severally underestimated his need for certain goods for this journey.

 As he walked, he pulled the water skin up to his lips, finishing off the last of his water reserves and the Nile hours behind him. He pursed his lips. He was going to be in need of more soon, especially with the way the sun was blazing; food was also necessary as he had already eaten some and had the rest stolen by a flock of hungry birds when he had stopped to eat the parts he did get. He wiped his brow with the back of his hand. There was nothing but sand for miles around him. Atem sent up a silent prayer to the gods for redemption and he continued on.

 An hour after his predicament started, a sigh of relief came from his lips as he found himself coming upon a tiny village. Maybe he could get a job for food and water….? As he crossed the line from desert to village, he found himself slightly lost and confused on what to do. So he wandered. And listened. Closer to the middle, right where a large well sprang up and several people were speaking amongst themselves, he came across a distraught looking woman, staring at an empty mat rested there possibly for one of the vendors. He hesitated. Atem wasn’t one to leave someone in worry. He gently placed a hand on her shoulder. She spun, shocked, but fighting strong tears back. He smiled gently at her, “Excuse me. Is there anything I can do to help?”

She reached up, wiping the edges of her eyes, “I’m afraid not. Unless you are a scribe.” She sniffed. Fighting harder, she continued, “You see, my eldest son went hunting a year ago and has not returned. My husband and other son have gone every day to find him but we fear the worst; I was hoping the scribe would write for me a prayer so that I can ensure he makes it safely to the afterlife…. Even if we cannot give him a proper burial.” Atem’s face softened.

 “I can help you after all,” he soothed, “I happen to be a scribe myself. I am trained in both writing and prayers.” Her face lit up.

 “Will you…?” He nodded. Taking place a on the mat, he pulled out some of the supplies he had brought with him: papyrus, pen, and ink. He dipped the pen into the ink and paused, waiting for the words to come to him.

When they did, he quickly, but neatly, wrote out prayer, reciting it, “Great Anhur, god of those who hunt, we come to you now, begging for your internal mercy for the spirit of this great warrior who has severed in your name.” He stopped and asked the woman for her son’s name. Once he had it, he wrote it, continuing with, “We ask for your protection on his soul so that he may find peace everlasting.” He lifted his face once done, finding the woman no longer holding back her tears as he handed her the paper. “Will this do?”

 She nodded, “Yes, it will. Thank you! Thank you!” She reached to her side where a small bag hung and she pulled from it a couple of coins, to which she pressed to him. Atem raised his hands.

 “I am not….”

“Please, take them. This is all I am able to afford but for my son’s soul, I would pay far more.” He hesitated but eventually took the coins. She left. A voice hummed from behind him and he jumped up, surprised to find an elderly man, gnarled and bony, staring at him, a smile on his face. Atem bowed.

 “You must be the one who owns this mat.”

 “Indeed I am,” the man mused. Atem held out his hand and he likewise did the same, allowing the coins he had just received to fall there.

 “I apologize for taking your spot,” he commented, “but it didn’t feel right to leave her so distraught.”

 “Your writing skills are excellent,” the old man returned, “and that prayer… are you perhaps a priest?” Atem chuckled nervously, rubbing the back of his head.

 “I’ve had some training in prayers, yes.” This time, he huffed.

 “That much is obvious.” He paused. Turning, the old man motioned to the house behind him. “Come in boy. My wife would throw an ever loving fit if I didn’t at least invite you in for dinner. Where are you traveling to?”

 Oh. He hadn’t thought that far ahead and so, shakily, he muttered out, “To- To Thebes.” To further the lie: “I go for proper priest training there.” The old man huffed again.

 “You’ll find excellent training there then. Now come. It is time to eat.”

Atem found himself enjoying his time with the couple but the fear of being discovered by his father’s searches eventually got the better of him three days later. The couple begged him to stay. When the old man could no longer sit on his mat, needing to retreat inside for a break, Atem would kindly take his place, providing prayers and papers to all who needed them. He smiled gently at their begging. He could not stay; the chain of duty had begun to tighten on top of his other fear and, now no longer able to breathe, he felt the need to begin his journey once more which he did the following day with a bag now filled with food, coin, and water. He waved the whole time to the two of them until he disappeared over a large sand dune.

He walked for several more days. Quickly, as before, his food and water ran out but he was in luck as he came upon an oasis- a real one and not a mirage as the desert was sometimes funny to do. He stumbled into the grassy shade with a deep sigh. Stooping by the water’s edge, he gulped down mouth fulls of water before filling his skin once more. A rustle caught his attention. He turned, squinting into the darkness as he looked for a source of the noise, reaching for a rock at his side to defend against whatever wild animal it may be. The noise stopped. A couple of men appeared a second later, hands raised.

“Easy boy,” the largest one spoke, “We don’t mean you any harm.” Atem eyed him. He lowered the rock. The man pointed overhead. “We’ve come to stop here for the evening before heading on to Abydos in the morning. Why don’t we camp together? My friend and I have enough food for three.” Atem’s stomach rumbled at the news. He agreed.

The night time found him sitting around the fire with these two men, sharing stories of adventure and fun, and enjoying a nice meal of cooked meat and fresh water. It didn’t take long for him to fall asleep. Or to wake up when he felt his bag being removed from under his head. Atem jerked up. His eyes were still blurred from sleep but he could make out one of them holding it, rummaging through it. He jumped up, “Give that back!”

 “Easy boy,” the large man laughed, “We’re just getting our payment for feeding you is all!” Atem lunged forward but was met by a fist from the other man. He coughed, dropping to his knees. They laughed again. Once they had removed his coin and water skin, they threw the empty bag back to him. The leader smirked, “Don’t want you following us now. Nighty-night boy.”

 The last thing he saw was a fist.

 The following day, Atem woke with a groan. He scrambled to his bag as his memories came flooding back to him and his face paled when he realized that it wasn’t a dream, they really had robbed him of everything. He sighed. Staggering, he left the oasis behind. For hours he traveled. His head was pounding and his stomach twisted painfully. Death seemed to seep into his bones, and like with the jaguar, he wondered if this was truly the end

 Was he going to die in the desert?

 What was Heba going to think? Probably that he was such a lame hero.

 By that mid-afternoon, Atem found himself staggering far worse than he had been when he left the oasis but he was at least shaded by some cliffs. He licked his lips. They were dry and painfully bleeding. He stepped forward. A wave of dizziness washed over him. He tried weakly to catch himself but couldn’t, resulting in him tumbling off the edge of a cliff, into the darkness below.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> After what I can only describe as the morning from hell, I'm happy to finally be updating today's three chapters! I hate adulting so much. It's just a big waste of time. :\
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy the next three chapters!

Yugi was sure that he was screaming. He had a hard time telling since it sounded like the end of the world was raining down around his head. Oh no! One of those rocks was going to squish him like an ant at this rate or, worse, leave him alive but buried in a cave where no one could find him. He huddled against the wall. Squeezing his eyes tightly, he prayed to whatever god could hear him that he got out of this in one piece. He covered his head with hands.

 Then, it stopped.

 He was breathing heavily. He waited for a good few minutes to make sure that the apocalypse had really not come and, once realizing that he was in fact alive, he slowly began to stand, coughing through the thick dust cloud that had formed. He waved a hand to clear the air in front of him. Once that too settled, Yugi pulled out his cell phone from his pocket and turned the flashlight on. A quick glance at the screen told him that there was no way he was going to call out since there was no signal.

He moved the light around where he was. Yikes. The whole front of the cave was now completely blocked. There was no way he was going to make it out that way. He swallowed hard. If he made it out at all. He hadn’t told anyone where he was going and the chances of them looking for him in this particular spot were slim.

 He would have to find a way out.

 Turning towards the back, he found that the cave was much deeper than he originally thought.  There were two tunnels at least. He looked at both before deciding to try the left one first.

It went back a good distance. Yugi found himself walking through several feet of darkness for a good few minutes and, if his clock was to be believed, close to five in fact. He stopped though when he came upon something amazing. At one point, the tunnel… stopped being a tunnel. A natural one at least. The ground abruptly turned from rough rocks to smooth sandstones that looked like something straight out of an ancient temple. He blinked. Moving his light revealed a vast array of ancient hieroglyphics on either side of him, carved into equally smooth sandstones and his mouth dropped. It looked like no one had been here in years!

 His elation didn’t last long. Worry crept into his mind. Was this… could this be the place that those guys in the valley had been looking for?

 If so, he could still be in a world of danger!

Swallowing hard, Yugi continued to move forward. At the end of the corridor, there was only one thing: a door. On it was a golden eye, a symbol, slightly different than the one he remembered seeing in all the history books, and a cold shiver went down his spine. There was something unnatural about it. It seemed to be peering into his soul.

 Yugi swallowed hard again.

 There was something... something... he couldn't put his finger where the unsettling sensation was coming from but there it was. He reached out a hand. Surprisingly, the stone was ice cold, not hot like the morning sun of Egypt or the sand when the sun reflected back into his face. It was completely different from the world around it.

And yet, it seemed to be a natural part of the stone. It was beautifully carved and eloquent. A thought crossed Yugi's mind. What if... what if...?

"There's no way that this is a tomb," Yugi muttered to himself. "It doesn't look like anything I've seen before in any of the journals that Rebecca loaned me." He paused. "Could this be... could I have found a completely undisturbed tomb?" Excitement returned. He flattened his palm against the stone, his eyes wandering along the edges until he uncovered what looked like a seam. It was just large enough that someone of his stature could easily slide their fingers inside and, with a great tug, manage to open it. So he did. His fingers managed to wedge their way into the seam. Yugi grunted. He tugged and tugged, groaning under the weight until, finally, it came open. He fell to the ground with a thud.

Dusting himself off, Yugi stood. He raised his cellphone again, allowing the light to travel around the room as he explored it. It was much deeper than he expected. There seemed to be no floor off to either side of the entrance but in front of him, appeared a long narrow walkway and very carefully, he stepped forward. Something snapped. He couldn't help but jump back when two lights on either side of the walkway lit up, revealing underneath them two pedestals and on them items made of pure gold. One of them was a set of scales; the other was a round looking almost like an eye. He gasped. They glistened in the light, looking almost brand new. Truly this was a glorious find! He pointed his flashlight back to his front, relighting his path. Yugi took another step forward. Just as before, another set of pillars appeared only there were two different items on top of them: a ring and key. His smile became even brighter. He stepped forward again. A third set appeared: a rod and a necklace. What were the chances of something like this ever happening? Rarely. He'd been studying some of the books that Rebecca had given him and he knew about the Carter find and this definitely had to rival even that!

The narrow walkway eventually ended. Yugi landed with a huff off a short flight of stairs and he looked around. What other wonderful treasures where here? The platform he landed on lit up just like the pillars and his heart was really pounding now; his palms were sweaty and his eyes went wide. There was one more golden object, a box, with the same creepy eye emblazoned on the front. He stared at it for a moment, feeling something in the back of his mind tickle at the thought of what could be inside. His curiosity nearly got the better of him as he reached for it, darkness seemingly pooling around it in defense. Yugi could feel himself being pulled to it. There was something….

Yugi stopped his hands just above the golden box, remembering that Rebecca was going to have his butt for touching such a fantastic find without the proper preparations and pulled his hand back. The darkness subsided with it. There was only one thing left in the room behind the box. He had to blink, rubbing his eyes, to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. Was that.... a sarcophagus? He blinked again. Oh man. Oh man. OH MAN! He took a deep breath. Walking forward, Yugi couldn't help but circle the thing, running his hand over the top. A fine layer of dust came off of it. He’d suffer for that later. Clearly, no one had been here in centuries. This was astounding! Wait until he told his Grandpa and Doctor Hopkins!

He stopped. Crap. Grandpa. Doctor Hopkins. He had a bigger problem right now than worrying about such a fantastic find. He had to figure a way out of the cave. He took one final look around before retracing his steps back out of the room, making sure to shut the door behind him. He then once more retraced his steps. This time, he went down the other diverging tunnel.

 Yugi swore when a few minutes later, his flashlight and cell phone died. He knew he should have taken the charger away from Malik when he had the chance. Frustrated, he slid the device into his pocket and very carefully, placed his hands on the cool stone wall, using it to guide him down the tunnel. He tripped a few times. Blood oozed down a gash he got as a reward for that and he hissed as it stung. That didn't stop him though. He continued on his path but his hopes were dashed when he realized that he had come to the end of tunnel; it, like the original entrance, was covered in boulders. From the explosion? He couldn't be sure. The fear started to trickle back into his system. Was he going to die here? Was this the end of him?

 He shook his head. A bit of dust fell out of his hair and onto his shoulders. No way was he going to die here. Yugi reached up. He managed to find a boulder near the top he could wrap his fingers around and he pushed then pulled. It moved just the tiniest of bits.

 Hope surged in his chest. He continued to push and pull on the stubborn rock until it finally came loose, sending him tumbling back onto the ground. Dust flew up causing him to cough and he cleared the air around him by fanning his hand; it took a few minutes but it eventually worked and he was able to look up, pleased to see a stream of light coming from the outside. Fresh air flooded his space. Yugi breathed in deep. How refreshing!

 He scrambled up to his feet again and he clawed at the opened space, easily pulling down the next couple of rocks. A few more resulted in a tumbling of the rest. The blocked entrance was no longer such and he stumbled out into the morning light, a light breeze chilling him in a brand new way.

 Yugi was freed!

 He smiled, pumping a fist in the air, before he finally looked around and took a note of where he was. He was clear on the other side of the valley away from the camp and he paused for a second, listening. There was nothing. No explosions. No guns. No voices. Clearly the group was gone.

 It was safe to return back the way he had come.

 Yugi clambered over some rocks but found a narrow ledge that he could use to walk back through. About fifteen minutes later, he lifted his head in surprise when he heard, "Yugi! Yugi! Where are you Yugi?" Tears threatened his eyes. Grandpa!

He sprinted forward, coming around the bend of the path, easily spotting the older man in his khaki outfit and safari hat, hands up around his mouth as he called for him. He sniffed, shouting, "Grandpa!"

The older man spun. There was no hiding the shock on his face as he took note of his grandson, tattered, torn, and a bit bleeding, as he ran towards him, wrapping his arms tightly around his throat. Despite his age, Grandpa was strong and he caught the young man with no issues. Yugi laughed into his shoulder. Never had he been so relieved to see his grandpa! A few minutes later, Rebecca, Doctor Hopkins, Malik, and even Isis and Rishid approached them, a deep smile on their faces as they recognized the young man. Rebecca was the first to reach them. When Yugi got off of Grandpa, she hesitated a second before finally reaching out and capturing him in a tight hug.

"Welcome back Yugi," she muttered. Once the moment had past, she pushed him back at arm’s length, glaring. Louder, she proclaimed, "Where in the world have you been? We've been looking for you all night long! You nearly wasted a large portion of our supplies by leaving them out to the elements and do you know what could have happened to the Osiris statue you just happened to have left out?" He blushed.

 "Sorry Rebecca," he muttered. Doctor Hopkins placed a hand on her shoulder.

 "I'm sure the boy has a good reason," he soothed. She bit her lip, trying to fight back her sharp words. He looked between all the adults before stopping on Isis.

 "I went out for a walk last night," he confirmed, "but there's something you should know about." He launched into his tale of going for a walk to enjoy the night air, the mysterious group of people, the explosion (which they also confirmed they had heard and had sent them into alarm when they weren't able to find him), and the amazing discover he had managed. Three people were impressed but the other three, the Ishtars, shared a look that Yugi didn't miss. He nearly stopped. Something wasn't right about the expression or there was something about it that unsettled him as he described the amazing tomb he had uncovered by accident. Doctor Hopkins stepped closer.

 "Lead us there," he confirmed. "I am, as the expression goes, intrigued." Yugi nodded. Once the group had regathered their supplies, and dressed his wounds, he lead them back up to tomb.

Hopkins easily confirmed it as the best find of the twenty first century; even Carter's original find was nothing compared to this and the glow of the complement sent a blush of contentment through his system. Never had Grandpa been prouder. In the excitement, he forgot about the worried expression of the Ishtars and relished in the idea of the new dig that seemingly was going to begin soon.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey!
> 
> Just a disclaimer, I spent months looking for Ancient Egyptian names so I apologize if the names for the three minor characters are not accurate. I really did try looking but the resources are very limited and/or I'm an idiot who doesn't know where or how to look for the accurate information.
> 
> I hope you enjoy!

The world seemed to be spinning severely. Atem was painfully aware of something sticking into his back and he shifted, slowly realizing that it was papyrus that poked him; he shifted again. His arm fell out onto dirt and his eyes fluttered open. He barely was able to make out a simple home where he was laying and he shot up, completely worried until a sharp pain shot down his neck and then back up into his head. A hiss slipped out of his lips.

"Don't try to move so quickly," a soft voice soothed. Cool hands touched his forehead and shoulder but the pressure was not unwanted, it was rather welcomed and nice. He blinked. His sight became clearer. A woman kneeled beside him, her face broken out in a smile as she looked him over. Her hair was tied back by a leather strap, revealing dark skin but brighter eyes that looked at him gently. She slowly reached beside her. There was a jar with cool water inside and a cloth that she wetted before offering to him to clean his face. When done, she offered the water slowly. He took it gratefully. She held the bowl in an attempt to slow him down because he definitely looked like he needed the Nile. He gasped when he was done. She took it, standing and clearing the space to return and sit with him. "My name is Na’eemah. My husband Asim found you floating in the river next to our village; we thought you were dead but the healer was able to bandage you up. You'll have a bit of pain for now. He hopes that with a couple of days of rest, you'll be good as new." She gently pushed his shoulders back down, "So rest." Atem nodded before allowing his eyes to flutter shut again.

As promised, after several days of rest, he no longer felt the pain that his apparent stumble down a rather large cliff and down a river had caused. He found the couple to be pleasant company. They also had several children and the eldest Mosi took him out to go fishing. As they stood in the boat, he showed Atem how to take the spear and aim carefully to pull the fish from the river. His first day was completely wasted. Atem felt soreness in his shoulders and back and his basket was empty but Na’eemah chuckled, ruffling his hair. Heat rushed through his system. It had been a long time since he had felt something like this; his mother had passed during childbirth and him and Heba had outgrown the nannies a long time ago. They were expected to be men.

Mosi grabbed his arm one day on one of their fishing trips, his eyes wide as he indicated a spot on the river, slowly pulling him away from it. Atem squinted. There was something moving…

His own eyes went wide when he realized what it was.

It was a crocodile.

“We should hunt elsewhere today,” the boy noted, “it is best to give him the respect he deserves.” Atem nodded. They pushed the boat back up the river the way they had come, stopping in a different location. Mosi showed him how to set some traps. Atem took to them quickly and after an hour, the two boys found themselves sitting in the boat, playing a friendly game. Mosi eyed him once even that was done, “So… Set. What was your life like? I know you said you’re heading to Thebes for priest training but…. Do you miss it?”

The young prince paused. Did he miss it? Of course he did; he missed laughing with Heba in their downtime and sleeping under the stars with him. He missed his best friends Mahad, Mana, and Seth. A soft smile crossed his face, “My life was good. I had- have- a brother and father that I adore more than anything in this world.” He leaned back a bit, exposing his face to the sun. “My brother… he always seemed to be the more… aloof out of the two of us; everyone always said I would be a better….” He paused, almost slipping, “Heir to our father’s business but I don’t think so. He’s always been strong and gentle and wiser than I could ever wish to be. I’m envious a bit. He’s always seemed to know where he belongs.” He sighed, turning back to face the young man. “Me on the other hand? I’ve always felt like a ship on the water, unable to anchor anywhere.”

 

Mosi patted his shoulder, “I’m sure you’ll find your anchoring point soon. Thebes will hold the answers.” Atem nodded.

 “I hope you’re right.”

 A few hours later, the two of them hauled in their catch which consisted of a few good size fish. Half were cleaned and prepared for sale at the afternoon market, the other, for their bellies and that of his family. They pushed the boat to shore. Together, they walked back with the heavy load to their home when a dark, majestic horse caused Atem to stop in his tracks. He recognized her anywhere. To his disbelief, and to confirm his suspicions, a man walked out of the house, a tall man with tattoos prominent on his forehead, bald head, and sharp features, and the Millennium  Key protruding from under his cloak, appeared. He bowed to him, “Prince Atem, I am glad to see you are alright.”

His face paled as did Mosi’s. The priest moved towards him, a serious expression on his face. When he stopped, the shorter boy had no choice but to look up at him and he was surprised by the expression he found there. Shada cleared his throat. “Your majesty, I am loathe to be the one to inform you of this but your father, Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen, has passed away. Prince Heba, no, your brother needs you.” He turned again, bowing to the family that had gathered behind him, “We thank you for your careful care of our wayward prince. We send the blessings of the gods upon you for it.”

 That was it.

Shada turned and gently placed a hand on Atem’s back, leading him to the horse. His feet moved but his body was numb. His father? Was… gone? Tears threatened his eyes but he didn’t let them fall; Heba must be… He surely hated him now, being gone on a journey while he had to sit by their father’s side and watch him leave. A mixture of emotions met in his stomach: fear, anger, guilt. He barely had the strength to climb upon the stallion. Had Shada not been behind him, he was certain that he would have fallen.

The horse rode non-stop. Only when it was absolutely necessary did they do so. Atem stayed mute throughout it all. What had taken him nearly a month to achieve on foot, it achieved just short of a week and they rode into the courtyard, several figures came out to meet him: Mahad and Mana, Set, and behind them all….

 “Heba,” he croaked. His twin looked horrible. His face was tight and the area beneath them deeply red. Tears came to his own eyes as he slid from the horse and he hesitated for a second; he didn’t stay that way as his brother ran towards him, hugging him tightly around the middle as he buried his face in his neck. Atem slowly wrapped his arms around his shoulders. Even though he should have been concentrating on his brother, he couldn’t help but hear Shada move around them to where Siamun and Isis stood off to the side. Their faces were drawn, concerned. They spoke in hushed whispers.

 “We don’t have much time, “ Siamun started. “The ritual has to begin tonight; if we wish to stop his return that is….”

“I agree but… can’t we wait,” Isis soothed. “He has only just returned and….”

 “No,” he cut off shortly. “See reason Isis. He will be on the move as soon as he realizes that the pharaoh is dead. He will be looking for his next victim and should he achieve his plans….”

 “This is… too cruel.”

 “You’ve never been one for hesitation.”

 “Yes, but nothing we have done has ever sacrificed one so innocent before.”

 Atem lost the rest of the conversation as Heba moved. He looked up at him, taking him by the hand, “I’m so glad you’re safe Atem.” He nodded.

 “I’m so sorry… Heba,” he choked out, “I shouldn’t have left you when father was so ill.” His twin shook his head.

 “Don’t. You have always longed for adventure my brother and I’m glad… I’m glad you’ve had your chance.” He took a breath. “We… still have some time but….” He paused, squeezing his hand. “Let us go to rest for now. I want to hear of your adventures and would like to discuss some things with you as well.” Atem bit his lip. He nodded and Heba released his hand, walking towards the palace entrance. As he fell behind him, Atem couldn’t help but see the regal Pharaoh he was soon to be glowing from the depths of his spirit.

 Duty had finally caught them both.


	9. Chapter 9

The rest of the dig was set into clearing the new site while finishing the original dig; it was a massive undertaking that easily divided the camp and forced both the Smithsonian and British Museums to send more aid for Doctor Hopkins. He was a might smug at the news. Rebecca, on the other hand, was openly proud of the information. Not only were they able to uncover new information about the middle and lower upper classes from their original dig, but now they were gathering information on a new mystery. Hopkins hummed one day as Yugi approached him.

They were standing in the well paved hallway just short of the door. Lights had been carefully placed throughout the tunnel which meant that he didn’t need to kill his phone again. Isis had also paid for guards. Two of them were currently with the good doctor as he continued his analysis and they only acknowledged Yugi with a nod of their heads. Doctor Hopkins spent several minutes on each symbol, nodding his head, referring to a manual he had tucked into his pocket, before he would write the symbol down, snapping a picture, then moving on to the next one. Yugi leaned his head to the side. He said nothing but merely observed the man’s methods. The silence stretched between them but his arrival had not gone unnoticed.

"This tomb is extraordinary," Hopkins mused, "Never have I seen such carvings in a tomb like this before. It seems to be some kind of legend or warning."

"You can read it Professor?"

 "Not exactly. It is an intricate science and a lot of study needs to be done in order to determine how this needs to be read." Hopkins pointed to a symbol. "See how this points to the left? It might indicate we need to read from right to left. However, we could also need to read from top to bottom, much like the Japanese do." He hummed again, marking something in the notebook that he carried. “Yes, we’ll have to spend some time deciphering this but it should be a highly educational and beneficial experience for the archaeological community.” He closed the book, facing him now. “You have given us a rather marvelous gift. I’m also glad you came out of this in one piece. I know your grandfather wouldn’t have known what to do if anything had happened to you.”

 Yugi’s face softened, “Grandpa has always been there for me. I can’t remember a time when he wasn’t; out of everyone in this world, he’s the one I respect the most.” He ducked his head. “I won’t lie professor, I was a bit worried there. All I could think was that I had to get back to Grandpa.” He nodded.

 “Yes, I can see that. The two of you have an incredible bond.” He smirked then. “And how similar! Both of you Mutos for sure!”

“I hope that doesn’t mean you’re talking bad about me Arthur.” The two of them turned to the entrance of the tomb where he appeared, wiping his hands down the front of his shirt before he removed the gloves he was wearing. Doctor Hopkins winked at Yugi.

 “Oh absolutely old friend. I was just telling your grandson about the time you almost lost your life to a beautiful woman’s husband….” Grandpa chuckled.

 “You’ll have to do better than that. I’m pretty sure Yugi’s already heard most of those stories!” Yugi rolled his eyes while the two of them chuckled. Growing serious, he continued with, “We’ve catalogued and took photos of everything in the main tomb. We’re ready to start moving out.” Hopkins closed his notebook.

 “Excellent. Has Isis been in contact about the removal process?” He nodded.

 “Yes, apparently the items are going to go on a cultural exchange with Japan since Yugi was the one to find them.” He smirked at his grandson. “Half will remain here while the other half will travel to Japan. Hopefully, between the two countries, we will be able to discover some interesting facts about this dynasty- whatever that may be.” Hopkins nodded.

 “Perfect. I’ll be staying here in Egypt through both the Smithsonian and the British Museum to continue studying the artifacts left in Egypt then. I assume the two of you will be returning to Japan? Will you help with the studies there?”

“I would love to,” the old man beamed.

 Hopkins nodded again before eyeing Yugi, “I’m sure you would want to be involved with this to.”

 Yugi licked his lips, “I sure would like to.” He paused. Squirming a bit, he ducked his head, “Uh… Doctor Hopkins?”

 “Yes?”

“Would it be alright… would it be alright if I take a look at the golden box that was in the tomb?” The two gentleman blinked, looked at each other, and then looked back at him. Hopkins’s brow furrowed.

 “Any particular reason why?”

 Yugi licked his lips again, “It’s just… this is going to sound weird but… I felt… I felt some kind of a connection to it. It really fascinates me.” Grandpa hummed.

“I don’t see any reason why not,” he mused. “I’ve already checked it. There doesn’t seem to be any booby traps or anything on it. What do you think Arthur?”

 Hopkins smiled, “I’m sure it’ll be alright. Isis probably will have no arguments with it.” He patted Yugi’s shoulder, “Besides, we could never thank you enough for this find.” He looked quickly down at his watch. “We should probably return to camp anyway. All the items will be catalogued at the camp before we ship them off to the Grand Egyptian for final cataloguing before sending them to the Domino Museum.” He nodded to the two of them. “I do believe the shipment will occur just before your return to Japan is that correct?”

Grandpa nodded, “That’s right. Our plane leaves a few days afterwards.” The three of them were now walking back through the tunnels which had been supported by beams; after the explosion, concern for their integrity had been raised. The support team had done a fabulous job identifying the weak spots and fixing them. Plus, there was the added bonus of the stringed lights. Outside the tunnel, two more armed men stood on either side of the entrance. Yugi nodded to them while the other two talked. One returned the nod with a smile. Military men stood around in various locations from there since Yugi’s report of tomb robbers setting the explosions in the valley had alarmed everyone. If they were so determined to get whatever it was they were after, with such dangerous techniques, then it was clear that the people in the camp ran the risk of an attack or worse, losing the tomb.

Hopkins hummed as they walked into the camp, “You know Sugoroku, this tomb has me perplexed. It’s like nothing we’ve ever seen before. It looks like a tomb for a king but there is no documentation of any king buried this far from the Valley of the Kings and his or her name… well, it simply is not present at all. Preliminary readings of the hieroglyphs show nothing that could be even remotely close to being the name of the person buried here.”

“This might not be a traditional burial Arthur. After all, we found none of the usual copic jars that accompany the dead. All we have are the golden artifacts,” Grandpa replied.

 “Yes, yes, and with the strange eye symbol. One would immediately believe they are the Eye of Horus but the design is different; it is almost as if they are their own unique symbol….”

“Grandpa,” a voice interrupted. The three turned to see Rebecca running towards them, her face flushed. “Grandpa! I think I might have found something out about the tomb.” Yugi noticed that in her hands was a book that she had opened. There was a picture on one of the pages that resembled the mark on everything in the tomb. Hopkins nodded.

 “Excellent work my dear. Why don’t we meet in the artifacts tent and go over it?” She nodded and lead the way. The four of them sat around a table as Rebecca began to go over her discovery.

 “I was hoping to find some information on the eye symbol and came across this by accident. Apparently, it was the symbol of Pharaoh Akhenamkhanen I who ruled over Egypt for several decades before he died.” She paused. “There’s… something weird about the information though. It seems that Egypt went roughly a year without a Pharaoh.” Hopkins blinked.

 “A roughly a year without…?” She nodded.

“All information that is currently available says that Akhenamkhanen I died sometimes in the summer months for Egypt but it wasn’t until at least the following year that his son Akhenamkhanen II took the throne.” She crossed her arms, “Of course, we can’t be too sure how long it was since a lot of the information related to both seems to have been erased or well-hidden.” They all fell silent.

“It’s possible,” she mused, “but until we’re able to clearly identify the items inside as well as that sarcophagus, I’m not sure we can be certain of anything.” Yugi’s face fell and he rubbed a hand over his stomach. Something… something wasn’t settling right. He’d had the feeling ever since his grandfather had received the invitation back at the beginning of the year but it was growing worse and worse with each passing discovery.

 All he could hope was that it turned out to be nothing.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> My sleep schedule is trash. I'm going to bed at like 6 AM and waking up at 12 PM. alkdfasdjfj This is not what I needed the week before I go back to work. :\ I might have to start taking my medicine again to get back on schedule.
> 
> I keep forgetting to update because of this so here's my panicked attempt to keep on schedule.

Heba and Atem talked into the early hours of the morning. The older twin shared with his wayward brother all the woes the king had faced, his plight early the following morning of his departure, coughing and blood, the fevers, the weakness, and the eventual succumbing to his illness, and the news that a potential threat laid to the North from the badlands. Atem had to be prompted to release his fist. Blood oozed from the places were his nails cut into them. All that time… if he had just stayed….

 Heba grabbed his hand gently, shaking his head, “There’s nothing you could have done. None of the Sacred Guardians or the best healers in the kingdom were able to save him; father was already too far gone.” He released him, sitting back in his chair. Heba took a long drink from his goblet. “I am… I am just glad you are safe.” He smiled brighter. “Now tell me. What was your grand adventure like?”

 Haltingly, he shared the tale he had lived: nearly being mugged the first night and traveling across the sands, unsure of when his next meal would come. He told about the oasis and the bandits who had robbed him, of hiding in the sands when needed, and of the family who had took him in as their own and the old man and woman he had met early on. He was thankful for his training then. Heba smiled softly as he recounted his tale with excitement and only once he had told the story of every little thing, did Atem sit back in his own chair, smiling softly at his brother. His face shifted when he remembered why it was his journey had come to an end. He swallowed hard.

“Heba?”

 “Hmm?”

 “What’s going to happen now? When will you…?” His voice caught. Heba shook his head.

 “It hasn’t been decided yet. The Guardians are thinking that it would best be done on the day following the burial; a clean transition they say.”

 “Makes sense.” He took a shaky breath. “So this is it huh? Duty has finally caught us.” His twin nodded.

 “That it has….” He paused for a second and looked ready to say something else when, suddenly, there came an explosion from another part of the palace. The two of them stood quickly. “What was that,” Atem gasped.

Heba’s face paled, “An explosion?” The large ornate doors swung open quickly and a guard ran forward, bowing his head.

 “Your majesties,” he coughed out. Collapsing to his knees, he coughed a little more before managing out, “The palace… the palace is under attack!”

 “Who would dare? And so close to father’s death…,” Atem growled.

 “Your majesties,” a new voice called. The two of them turned to find Shada, Isis, Siamun, Mahad, and Mana running their way. Mana ran straight to Atem, embracing him tightly.

 “You’re alright,” she cried. He patted her head.

 “We’re alright,” he promised. Heba faced the adults.

 “What’s happened?”

 “We’re afraid the palace is under attack your majesty,” Shada confirmed. Heba’s fist tightened.

 “Where?”

 “Near the gates.”

 He straightened and once more, Atem couldn’t help but notice how strong and regal he looked. His eyes were clearer than they had been in days, “I will go there.”

 Everyone blanched, “Your majesty! You can’t….”

“Heba,” Atem started, “You need to stay where it is safe.” Heba smiled at him, patting the hand that gripped his shoulder.

 “If it is either of us that must stay safe,” he said softly, “It is you.” Atem blinked. Without warning, Heba turned from him, breaking his hold. He could now only watch as his brother walked forward to the guard, kneeling by his side as he placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “Raise the alarm and find a healer. Help the children escape from here through the tunnels. If they are bold enough to attack from the front, they most certainly have a trap at the rear; they’ll be waiting. Get them to the Nile and on a boat.” The guard nodded, staggering to his feet before returning the way he’d come, clutching his arm. Heba faced Shada. “Come with me Shada. I will need your guidance to end this quickly.” He faced Mahad. “Take Mana somewhere self.”

“Your majesty,” he started. Heba froze. His face looked torn and he bit his lip but Mahad managed out, “I am coming with you.” Mana grabbed his arm.

“You’ll be killed!” He smiled at her.

“We’re magicians,” he soothed, “there’s nothing we can’t pull off. Even escaping death.” Tears clouded her eyes but she nodded, releasing his arm. Atem stepped up.

“I’m coming too.” Heba shook his head, placing his hands on his shoulders.

“I need you to stay here brother,” he begged. “I’ve already lost our father. I can’t lose you too.” Atem paused as he released him. “And if I fall, Egypt will need a king. Promise me you will stay here? Please?” He bowed his head.

“Alright.” Heba nodded, pleased by the answer. Shada lead the way to the door, holding it open for him with a bow, and the king went out, leaving his family to watch as he did so. Mana waited a few seconds before she sprinted for the door. Atem started to follow. However, Isis, the other guardian who had entered when the explosion had first gone off, stopped him.

“Prince Atem,” she started. He turned to face her and she bowed her face, “Your majesty, you must come with me and your mentor.” He leaned his head to the side.

 “Heba needs me,” he returned flatly. Siamun stepped up then.

“All of Egypt needs you right now,” he explained. “The kingdom is in trouble; you must come with us. Only you will be able to save us.” He stopped, looking at the door.

“If I go… will all of this stop?” Siamun nodded.

“Yes.” Atem returned the motion and the three of them went out the back of the royal quarters. Fire lit up the night. Angry shouts could be heard coming from the front where they originated and he swallowed, knowing that he had left his brother to who knows what dangers. As they walked, Isis pulled her Millennium Necklace off of her neck, handing it to Siamun who nodded before pulling out a hidden pouch at his side, putting it inside where there sat the six other items. Atem blanched.

 “Why…?”

 “We must move quickly,” the old man cut off, “I will explain everything on the way but here is not a safe place.” He led them through the back courtyard and to a secluded wall where he opened a secret exit, pulling a hood over his head. Isis and Atem followed suit. They wound their way through the streets, particularly the empty ones, until they had finally left the kingdom behind. Siamun pointed to a rocky area north of their location. “There is our destination.” He paused, dropping his hand. “I owe you an explanation your majesty. You see, the items that your father created were created through dark arts and as such, they have been cursed in a way.” They continued walking.

“Cursed?”

 “Yes, cursed. While they grant immense powers, there was a heavy price to pay to go with them. Your father’s health decline was no random illness; it was the darkness finally eating away at him.”

 “Now that he is gone,” Isis added, “the darkness has spread rather far. We call this darkness Zorc.”

 “Zorc?”

 “Yes, a demon born of hatred and darkness,” Siamun explained. “The Millennium Items were created to save the kingdom; however, they brought him to life as well. As such, the king and the rest of the Sacred Guardians battled valiantly against him until Zorc was sealed.”

 “The seal was never meant to be permanent,” Isis said softly, “but it was meant to buy us time.”

 “Time for what?”

“Time to figure out how to officially end him,” Siamun nodded sagely. “And we did.” Atem blinked.

 “So how do I fit into all this? What about the attack on the palace?” Siamun stopped, turning to stare at him.

Isis squared her shoulders and faced him, her expression gentler, “It is Zorc who is attacking now. Word of your father’s death has moved him.”

Siamun spoke slowly, “In order to stop a demon, the spirit of the gods themselves must be sacrificed, used to guard the Millennium items against the darkness.”

 “What does this have to do with me,” Atem whispered. His body had never felt so cold, “I am not close to the gods. Heba is.” Siamun sighed, shaking his head.

“He is not,” Siamun replied. “If anything, Heba is a false god.” Atem blinked. Fear tore through his chest.

 “I don’t understand.”

 Siamun turned away. With his face hidden, he admitted, “I switched your crowns at birth. Egypt needs to believe that the man who sits on the throne is truly the god they need but in order to protect them, we must give up the one who truly is the gods incarnate. That is you. You are the one who was actually destined to rule Egypt but….”

Atem felt the world spin under his feet. He wasn’t sure what to make of the news. He nearly collapsed until Isis held him under the arm.

 “We are so sorry your majesty,” she whispered. “We had no other choice.”  Her words seemed to hurt him more and he bit his lip, trying to not sink into the sands and disappear as it was. He took a steadying breath. _For Heba. For Egypt_. He looked them both in the face, his eyes mirroring those of his brother, clearer than they had ever been.

 “What is it I am to do?”


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This be a short-short chapter. On the bright side, I'm updating three chapters. :D

Yugi yawned and rubbed his eyes. As promised, he had been allowed to take the golden box out of the tomb once everything had been ready to move and everyone had stood over his shoulder back in the artifacts tent, eagerly awaiting the opening. His heart had been pounding. The lid slid off easily; it was like time had never touched it. Inside, they were all amazed to find more gold. He carefully picked up one piece. There was no stopping the excitement that shot through him. His eyes lit up as he proclaimed, “It’s a puzzle!”

Rebecca hummed. Then she noted, “I wonder what makes this one so different. I mean… all of the other items are intact.” Doctor Hopkins shook his head.

“That question can only be answered by putting it back together.” His smile widened. “I say we leave the young Muto to it. It seems like he’s already pretty enthralled with it.” They all turned back to face Yugi, finding him having already pulled out several of the pieces, scattering them on the table and trying to find their neighboring pieces. They left without a word. He didn’t sleep that night or the following but needed some the third day. This was a good thing because Rebecca and Grandpa were on the verge of knocking him out with a frying pan and forcing him to get a couple of hours. The Ishtars though seemingly kept their distance. Malik didn’t come around the tent as often as he had and Isis, who already was a rare visitor, no longer appeared at all. Only the military men around the camp were any indication that they were still involved in this dig.

Not that Yugi noticed. When he wasn’t resting or eating or handling any other needs, his face was buried into the puzzle. Over the span of a week, he managed to get one corner complete. Over two, a second. His eyes lit up in recognition. He sprinted from the artifacts tent to the meal tent, barging in and surprising basically inside. “It’s a pyramid,” he breathed out. Grandpa, Rebecca, and Doctor Hopkins all stood from their seats.

“The puzzle? You finished it?” Yugi shook his head.

“No, I’m not there yet but I’m close. I know the shape now though. It’s a pyramid.” Grandpa smiled, approaching him and running a hand over his hair. Yugi scrunched down a bit but smiled at the apparent praise.

“That’s wonderful Yugi,” he cheered. “But before you head back, why not get dinner? We’ve got a plate for you already.” He started to turn the meal down. However, his stomach had other plans, rumbling loudly for all to hear, and he blushed, kindly accepting it. Several minutes later, he was gone again to pull an all-nighter. He was going to try his best to finish it before he had to return to Japan.

Unfortunately, he didn’t finish it at the site. The following week saw the end of the primary dig; all of the found artifacts had already been transported to the Egyptian Museum and were currently waiting for departure to the cultural exchange with the Domino City Museum.  Yugi packed his bags solemnly. He really wanted to have a chance to finish the puzzle. With determination in his heart, he lifted up the box, his eyes probably more set and determined than they had ever been in his life. As they rode back in the jeep, hot and dusty, he made up his mind to ask Isis to let him finish the puzzle in the museum’s research area.

Surprisingly, she was more than eager to allow him to do so. He got the feeling again that she knew something that he didn’t and it made him nervous. He had two days. Two days, at least, until him and the puzzle were separated for their journeys to different places. Yugi swallowed hard before stretching.

He worked all that night.

He worked all the following day.

Then, closer to midnight on the second day back from the dig, he found himself staring at only one hole in the whole thing. It sat dead center, staring back at him. His heart was pounding. He reached back into the box, grabbing the final piece.

With a giant smile, he pushed it into place.

A bright light suddenly emerged from the center where the eye sat. He nearly dropped the puzzle, blinded by it. Along the walls, dark shadows emerged and he swore he heard whispering but still unable to see, he couldn’t if someone or something was there.

 Then he heard stone-on-stone. The light grew stronger.

Suddenly, a pair of hands reached around him, encircling him from both sides, and someone began reciting something. It was a foreign language. Not one he was familiar with at least. When the person was done, the light subsided and the whispers disappeared. They were left in silence. Yugi slowly opened his eyes. He jerked in surprise when he found a pair of hands holding the puzzle along with his own and turned enough to find a boy around his age standing there. They had similar spiked hair with golden bangs but his was wilder, more… regal in a sense. His eyes were a deep red instead of Yugi’s oddly purple. They probably could pass for brothers.

 Not that it mattered in that moment.

 Yugi jerked from his seat, taken completely off guard by his arrival, and screamed.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *dances like a ragtime performer* I'm still finding things to fix even as I post these chapters.

He could feel his heart begin to pump again. Although he had not really been dead, it still took a moment for his body to remember how it felt to live. First his heart. Then his limbs. His breath came back third like a knife to his chest. He wanted to scream. There was no strength in him to do so yet but he could feel himself returning to normal. Except for his brain. It felt fuzzy, like he couldn’t quite grasp anything. He did know that he could hear the shadows whispering which meant that, like him, the darkness had returned.

Someone had disturbed the tomb.     

He reached up into the blackness in front of his eyes and his hands stopped short. Grunting, he pushed at the lid that he vaguely remembered being over him. It gave with a hiss. The stone scrapped across stone. He pushed harder. Once he was able to finally climb out, he found himself not in the tomb where he had been buried, but in a strange room with even more strange things. Sitting in front of him was a boy about his age. He noticed the similarities between the two of them but had no time to really make note of them; he had the light to deal with. It blinded him but on the edges of his vision, he could make out the cold shadows, growing and stretching into their true forms as they had that night so long ago. Pain shot through his mind as he tried to remember. Pushing the thoughts aside for now was his only option.

He stepped closer. Placing his arms around the boy, he reached door the puzzle which started back at him with its infinite hidden wisdom. It tried to reject him. He didn't let it.

“Return,” he ordered in his native tongue. “To the realm hidden shadows where you belong. Be at peace.”

That was a moment when it seemed that they were going to be disobedient but they shuddered and the light faded. There was silence for a few minutes. He let out a sigh of relief. At least this time hadn't been much of a challenge. He wasn't sure the next time would be.

He became painfully aware of his arms circling the boy in front of him. He took some time to examine him now that they were out of danger; they really were alike but his hair was... cuter? Was there any other way to describe it? It wasn't until he turned that he finally got a look at his face and what he found was large, round eyes with the a royal shade of purple staring back him. His own breath caught. How close he looked to Heba! It couldn’t be…!

The boy suddenly fell from where he sat. He screamed. He froze.

A door opened behind them and someone spoke but it wasn't a language he recognized. He remembered many from his training but this was completely new. The boy stopped screaming. Haltingly, he pointed to him, and returned something in the same language.

Guess now wasn't the time to be amazed.

He quickly looked around. There was a high window behind some boxes not too far behind him and he sprinted towards it. The people cried out. He did manage to get up the first box but he stopped when someone called to him, "Guardian, please wait."

He froze. Turning, he found a woman and two men. Her face was oddly familiar to him but he couldn't... quite remember why. So was the tall man behind her. The shorter lighter haired one eyed him up and down for a second but quickly turned his face away. At least the two of them bowed. "We have been awaiting your return Guardian. I am Isis Ishtar and these are my brothers Rishid and Malik."

He climbed back down, eyeing them. "You... you understand me?" She nodded.

"Yes, the three of us have been trained for years in the old customs." She paused. "We apologize for how you have been awakened. Had we known when you would have awakened, we would have been here sooner."

She turned then, speaking to the young man who had now picked himself off the floor. The light haired boy - Malik- moved closer to him.

He pointed to the two of them as they conversed, "I have not heard that language before."

"It is called Japanese," Malik explained. "You'll find that a lot of new languages have developed since the days of the ancient kings." He ran a hand over his face. "There's a lot you're going to be introduced to. I hope you're ready. The times have.... greatly changed." He nodded. He could see that already. "We will need to explain a lot... to not just you but to them as well." He turned, watching as the young man with the puzzle nodded at what Isis was saying to him as he slid the puzzle around his neck.

It looked good on him.

A pang of loneliness rushed through him. Heba had always been meant to wear. His eyes widened. Turning on Malik, he gripped his arms. "Heba! Tell me... can you tell me about my brother?" Malik blinked.

"All will be made known soon," Isis cut in. She turned towards the way they had entered, followed closely by the boy and the older man he had spoken to. The man eyed him. Isis continued, "We are going to move to my office Guardian. It will be easier to explain what it is we know there." Rishid opened the door for her and the lot of them moved out.

The building they were in felt ancient yet... not at the same time. He could feel the power of his time almost melding with the time of this one. He tapped Malik on the shoulder, "What year is it?" He spoke over his shoulder.

"This year? 1996."

"There was a rise to a new religion," Isis added, still leading the group, "that essentially changed how the years were viewed as. It has been about three thousand years since you were last in this world."

He nearly fell to the floor.

Three thousand.... years?

He became painfully aware of how weak his body was. What little life, if one could call it that, seemed to be slipping from his vision and he thought that this would be the end for real this time. That was until a gentle hand took his own. He turned a bit. The boy was there again. He didn't seemed to be afraid of him anymore and his mouth moved, asking something, but he couldn't wrap his mind around the strange language; yet, deep in his heart, he could tell immediately what he was saying. He squeezed his hand back, a reassurance gesture.

"I am fine," he stated softly. Malik immediately translated for the boy who only nodded but the concerned look didn't leave his face.

He wasn't buying it.

He stated something to Malik who smiled softly, talking over his shoulder at him, "He wants you to know that his name is Yugi." He paused. "And he would like to know yours." He blinked. The guardian looked over at the b...Yugi, unsure of what to say. It took a second of hesitation before he responded.

"I don't remember my name." Malik blinked. He translated for Yugi who immediately looked taken aback as well. He recovered quickly though, enough that Malik had to blink again a bit before returning something as well. Yugi stood firm though. Malik was forced to sigh.

"He would like to know," he directed at him, "if he can call you 'Yami.' In his tongue, it means 'darkness’ which, he claims fits since you dosed that light in the artifacts room." He blinked. There was almost a sense of giddiness that rose up from his stomach and he had to fight back a laugh.

"I like the sound of it," he admitted to Malik. He turned, pointing to himself with his free hand, saying, "Yami." Yugi's face lit up and he chattered to Malik quickly. He snorted.

"Congrats on your first Japanese word," he translated. "Hopefully we can get you speaking a lot more of it quickly. Otherwise, I don't know how well you're going to make it." He paused. "And we better teach you English too just to be safe"

"We will focus on his language acquisition later,” Isis said. They had finally made it through the winding halls of the back parts of the museum to her office where she opened the door and led the way inside. Yami's eyes immediately landed on two more new figures: a tall, gray haired man in what looked like nice clothing and a girl with long straight blonde hair. They stood upon their entry. The man asked a question of the other old man but Isis stopped them, motioning for everyone to sit. Yugi led Yami over to the couch across from the girl whose eyes narrowed on him, clearly scrutinizing him with careful glances. He shifted under her gaze. Isis cleared her throat and began talking. Malik, sitting on his opposite side, translated.

"Our family for centuries has been tomb guardians," she explained, "It was our family's sacred job to ensure that those who have passed would be protected both in this world and the next. At first, that meant stopping grave robbers but as it was quickly popularized into archeology, it became important that we place ourselves in positions of power to ensure that the graves were treated fairly." She bowed her head to Yami. "We have failed in our duty greatly, Guardian, and for that, we could never get your forgiveness enough." Yami merely nodded in silence. She continued, "Out of all the tasks though, we were prepared from young ages to ensure that we would be prepared to assist the Guardian upon his return."

"You keep calling him a Guardian," the tall, older man asked, "but what is he the guardian of?" Isis closed her eyes.

"Of that, we do not know." The others seemed to deflate a bit at the news. "Time and history have unfortunately taken their tolls on our knowledge. What was once common to us was quickly forgotten and while we can no longer say for what reason it is that he is here, we do know that the world is in grave danger. There is a darkness that will rise with his return..." Isis turned her eyes on him, directly asking, “Is there anything that you can tell us Guardian?” He licked his lips.

Speaking slowly, he started, “I know I was meant to protect the Millennium Items. I was to ensure that they never left this land.” He squeezed his eyes shut. “Beyond that… I do not remember.” She hummed.

“It seems that someone has intentionally hidden away some of your memories.” He nodded.

“So it seems.” He paused. “Isis, I… I know that this is all important but before I worry more about… well….” He squeezed his fists this time over his knees. “I was wondering if there was anything you could tell me about my kingdom... about... my brother….” The blonde girl interrupted him with a shout. All eyes immediately turned to her but she bolted off the couch and over to a bag sitting in the corner of the room. The old man who had been next to her asked a question. She said something back. After a few seconds of flipping through the book she had pulled out, she ran back over, shoving it into his face.

"I knew your face looked familiar," she stated eagerly in a broken version of his tongue. He blinked, surprised to hear it said... so  _poorly_ but she continued with it anyway, "You look exactly like Akhenamkhanen II!" His eyes softened. He took the thing she offered and stared. There was no denying it; the statue he saw on the page looked exactly like him but much older. There was softness to the face but the expression was one of a man of wisdom and experience. He traced a finger over the page.

"Heba," he whispered. He hugged the book to his chest. There were strange symbols all around the picture and he couldn’t read them, but he eagerly looked up at her, haltingly asking, “What happened?” Her eyes softened.

“Akhenamkhanen II took the throne roughly one year after the death of his father Akhenamkhanen I. Under his reign, Egypt grew. He helped establish some of the greatest feats of technological advancements ever in Egyptian history.” She pointed to a couple of pictures on the following page, briefly explaining them to him. Yami couldn’t help but beam.

“Heba was always talking about his dreams for the future.” He stopped, something coming back to him. His face paled. “The night I was placed in the tomb, something happened at the palace. There was an explosion. Does this,” he held up the book, “explain what happened?”

Rebecca shook her head, “I’m afraid not. In fact, we were hoping your tomb would fill in the blanks for us.”

“Our family’s legends might,” Isis cut in. All eyes turned back to her but she had closed hers, looking for the words, “According to what little we have, it seems that someone calling himself 'Thief King' attacked the palace that night, leading a rebellion against the previous king. Your brother faced him.” She motioned to the book. “As you can see, he was successful. However, we are uncertain as to the fate of this so called 'Thief King' or what brought the rebellion to a close; that might explain why it took over a year for him to finally ascend to the throne as the new pharaoh.” Yami’s face fell but he nodded, temporarily satisfied with the knowledge he had been given. He returned the book to Rebecca.

“Thank you. This information… thank you.” She smiled and nodded. Yami returned his attentions to Isis.

 “Where are the Millennium Items,” he asked. Isis frowned.

“Four of them are here. The scales, key, necklace, and puzzle,” she motioned to Yugi. He had been silent the whole time, taking in what was being said and he now wrapped his hands around the puzzle, lifting it up gentle.

“And the rest?”

“Shipped to Japan,” Doctor Hopkins informed him. “You see, Yugi was the one to accidentally discover your tomb after he was forced to hide from some bandits.” He frowned. “And knowing what we know now, I firmly believe it was your tomb they were after.”

“It is possible,” Malik said slowly. “Especially if they were after the Millennium Items.” Isis translated everything for him this time.

Yami eyed the room around them. “My memories are scattered," he breathed, "but I know this for certain: I am the Guardian and should the Items ever be removed from Egypt, the risk of a great darkness returning to this world will be unavoidable. Is there any way to have the items returned?” Isis nodded.

“Of course Guardian.” She rose from her seat. Stepping around her chair, she moved to the large desk to his left; she picked up a strange device, a magic box he concluded, that allowed her to speak to someone outside of the room. Her conversation was quick. Halfway through it, she slammed her hand on the table, ice coming from her and all in the room got a feeling for how dangerous this woman truly was. However, it was not fear of her that shot up his spine. It was, instead, a different kind of fear. Something was wrong. Isis practically slammed the phone down. “They’re gone!” Everyone around him jumped to their feet.

 “Gone,” Yugi managed out. “What do you mean gone?” Isis’s glared.

 “The Millennium Items were stolen from the Domino Museum,” she hissed.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I did it again. I almost forgot to actually update my story. Oops.

Yami’s eyes looked over the large metal… _bird_ was the closest thing he could think of to compare the contraption outside the large windows as they stood inside what Yugi had called an ”airport,” waiting for their departure time. He shifted nervously. “Are you sure,” he asked in halting Japanese, “that thing is _safe_?” Yugi, who had been reading something, looked up.

 “Promise it is,” he assured him. “It’s how Grandpa and I even got to Egypt in the first place.” This didn’t seem to calm the other’s nerves as he shifted, messing with the hem of the tank top he wore. Yugi scanned him over. He had to admit, Yami was a looker. Instead of wearing the ancient clothing he had emerged in, a simple tunic with simple jewelry, he now wore dark blue pants with a black tank top; two gold bands circled the upper part of his arms. He had also wrangled his hair into a ponytail in some attempt to hide his similarity to Yugi even though they had been provided a through backstory to explain it away.

 Yugi frowned. He couldn’t imagine how the young man felt. After all, he had awoken thousands of years after everyone he loved was dead and gone, with the impending threat of the end of the world hanging over his head. Not to mention the events of the last couple of days.

 _The theft news had sent them all spiraling. There had been a sense of panic and frustration that immediately went through the room but he, most of all, seemed to the angriest. Isis regained herself and quickly calmed the rest of them._ _“There’s nothing to be done about it now,” she stated. “Our job now is to find those three items: the rod, ring, and eye.”_

_“How are we going to do that,” Rebecca asked, running a hand through her bangs. Isis stood up straight._

_“The other items of course.” Everyone blinked. Except for Yami. He knew what she meant; as the items had all been forged together, they had the ability to sense each other. If anywhere near the others, they would respond. Isis motioned to Yugi. “Yugi has been chosen by the puzzle. It responded to him, it acknowledged him as one with the ability to use its power. Therefore, he will have to return to Japan with it to search for the other items.” She turned to Yami. “But that also means the Guardian will have to go as well.” Malik coughed out a laugh._

_“Great. I’m hearing a lot of tutoring in my future.” She smiled._

_“Yes, dear brother, there will be.” She paused. “And packing as well. You will have to go with them.” He blinked._

_“Uh?” She took a deep breath._

_“My plan is this: I will book the four of you,” she indicated the two Mutos, Malik, and Yami, “on a later flight which should give us enough time to get the paperwork together for… Yami as well as at least teach him the basics of Japanese.”_

_“I was trained as a scribe,” he explained. “I was trained to learn languages quickly.”_

_Malik nodded, “That makes life a bit easier but why am I still having to go?”_

_“Dear brother, do you think he will be that easily accepting or understanding of all modern things? Yes, he will have the Mutos for help but there will be time where your training will be needed.” He tried to hide his excitement but it was easy to see that he was probably happy to hear this as he shrugged shoulders._

_“Fine,” Malik stood up. He smirked to Yami, nodding to the doorway. “The first thing though, is we’re getting you new clothes. Then we’ll worry about the language.” Yami looked down at his tunic. It definitely stood out compared to what the people around was wearing. He nodded and started to follow suit. They all did._

_“There is one more thing,” she noted. They all turned back to her as she added, “If the Millennium Items have selected someone, it will not be easy to take them back. There are rules that must be followed. It will be possible that your very lives will be in danger for this task.”_

_Yugi didn’t like the sound of that._

 “Yugi? Yugi?” He blinked, coming out of his thoughts. Yami was nervously wringing the paper in his hands, swallowing hard, “I think it’s time for our flight.” He looked up. Yep. They were ready to go. He stood from his seat, hoisting his carryon onto his shoulder. He smiled brightly at his friend.

“It’ll be alright. I’ll be right beside you the whole time.”

 “It seems unnatural,” he admitted. “If the gods wanted us to fly, they would have given us the ability.” He chuckled.

 “I won’t argue with you on that,” Yugi agreed, gently taking his wrist and dragging him to the gate. Grandpa, who had just returned from the restroom, smiled at the two of them, following as Yugi dragged him to where they were to board. Yami couldn’t seem to slow his pounding heart. He handed over his ticket just like Yugi, thanked the woman, and followed him on board. Their seats were near the front. Yugi helped him put his bag overhead and then showed him how to use the buckle which was mandatory for takeoff. Once settled, he squeezed the armrest, closing his eyes. A gentle hand rested on top of his. He opened his eyes to see Yugi smiling at him. In the last week that he had been in this version of the world, he had learned that Yugi was gentle. There was strength deep inside him that the boy didn’t seem aware that he had; he often seemed clumsy and somewhat withdrawn but he was always willing to help him and he was blindingly warm in certain aspects. Yugi spoke softly to him, “Takeoff and landing are probably the worse parts. I promise it’ll all be better from there.” Yami nodded. A voice came from overhead, asking for them to buckle up for their departure.

 Yugi didn’t let his hand go until they were leveled off in the air.

*****

 Yugi gently rubbed Yami’s back. He was pale and weak from the flight and Malik only shook his head, “We should’ve given him some motion sickness medicine.”

 “We didn’t know he was going to be this motion sick,” Yugi countered. Yami had no idea what they were talking about but he kept taking deep breaths, trying to control his rolling stomach. Malik rolled his eyes.

 “Doesn’t mean we couldn’t have guessed it. I would imagine not too many in ancient times would have been accustomed to such type of movement.” Yugi had to stifle a laugh. Grandpa returned after having someone help him gather their bags off the conveyor belt. Malik took the cart with a thanks to the person who bowed and left the four of them. Yugi gently placed a hand on his head, patting him.  Yami looked up.

 “We’ll get you back to the game shop so you can rest,” he assured him.

Malik scratched his cheek, “Are you sure about this? Isis was alright with getting us a temporary apartment….” Grandpa shook his head.

 “Absolutely not. There’s no point in dividing the troops right now as is. You’re going to need the puzzle right? If Yugi’s the one it’s chosen, then it would be best if all kept each other’s back.” He smiled. “Besides, it would be nice to have some help around the shop when he starts back at school.” Malik smirked at him.

 

“I knew you had an alternative reason.” Grandpa chuckled.

 “Never pretended like I didn’t.” He motioned to the doors. Yugi helped Yami stand and the four of them headed out the door. He was amazed at the sight. Tall buildings rose up all around him and _cars_ , he learned, could be seen and heard roaring across the various roadways. It was noisy. The ride to the game shop didn’t take too long and once there, Yugi lead the two of them up to a guest room.

 “Malik can sleep in here,” he motioned. “Yami can have my bed.” He blinked.

 “And what about you?” Yugi rubbed the back of his head.

 “I’ll be camping out on the floor.” He narrowed his eyes.

 “It’s your room. I can sleep on the floor.” He crossed his arms.

 “You’re not going to win this argument Yami. I’m sleeping on the floor.”

 “But….”

 “Alright,” Malik cut in. “That’s enough out of you two. You bicker like an old married couple and you’ve only known each other a week.” Yami blinked at him. Yugi, on the other hand, had a funny reaction. His face turned red all the way from his hairline down to the base of his neck and, if he didn’t know any better, Yami could’ve sworn that there was steam coming out of his ears.

 “It-it’s not like that,” he stuttered out. Malik’s grin unnerved him.

 “Whatever you say Yugi-kun,” he sing-songed.

“Are you boys settled in,” Grandpa asked. Yugi robotically went to the door to answer the question and while he did, Malik turned his smirk on Yami.

“You’re adjusting rather nicely.” He shrugged.

“I don’t have much of a choice do I,” he countered, “Stopping the end of the world requires I don’t… how does it go?... ‘Freak out.’ I’ll do that after everything is over.”

“Not what I meant but sounds like a plan.” He clapped him on the shoulder. “I’ll be there with the alcohol when it does though.” Yami smiled.

“Thanks Malik.” He waved a hand and went over to the bed, flopping over on it. Yami decided it would be best to find where he was staying and went to find Yugi. Even a place as simple as this one impressed him; the world had changed so much and just as Malik had guessed, he was a bit overwhelmed and really wanted to freak out about it but he couldn’t. He had a job to do. His missing memories concerned him though. He remembered his life at court, his brother and father, and the explosion of that night but for the life of him, he couldn’t remember why he had been placed in the tomb or even his true name which he knew was extremely odd. That memory had been specifically hidden. Why?

That would be too easy wouldn’t it?

There was a loud sound coming from the other room. It turned out to be Yugi exclaiming something so he stopped in the doorway as Yugi said, “So mom’s going to stay with dad for right now?” Grandpa nodded.

“Looks that way.” He paused. “This might be a good thing especially since that now means we don’t have to explain why Yami or Malik are here or why you’re going to be spending a lot of time out of the house all of the sudden.”

“And who said I was?” Grandpa laughed.

“Fate,” he pointed to the puzzle, “And the fact that you have a good heart and will want to help Yami all you can.”

Yugi groaned, “I hate when you’re right.” He chuckled again, rubbing his head. Yami couldn’t help but feel some level of… nostalgia in the scene but he cleared his throat. The two of them looked up. Yugi smiled at him. “Yami! Good news. Turns out my mom is going to be staying in America with my dad for a while so that means neither of us will have to sleep on the floor.” He smiled.

“That’s good.” Pause. “What is America?” The two of them shared a look before chuckling.

 “Seems you’ve got a lot of history to learn,” Grandpa mused.

 “If Isis is to be believed, three thousand years’ worth,” Yami replied.

 Yugi added, “Malik can teach you all that since he’s going to be working with bettering your Japanese anyway.”

 “I’m impressed you speak this well already. You mentioned something about being trained as a scribe?”

Yami approached them, resting on the counter next to the two of them. “Yes, I was originally training to be an advisor to my brother’s court when he became pharaoh. I was to act as translator. This meant I had to learn how to speak new languages quickly.” He paused. “I didn’t even know that this was the true reason I was being trained; never in my wildest dreams would a situation like this have even occurred to me. " Yami chuckled darkly, "And Heba always claimed I was good at making up stories when I wanted to.”

A soft smile came to Grandpa’s face as he replied, “I’m sure your brother would be proud of you.”

“Thank you,” Yami whispered. He nodded, moving away from the counter.

“Why don’t the two of you go unpack and rest up for a bit? I’ll get started on dinner here shortly.”

“Okay,” Yugi chirped. He pushed off the counter and led the way out of the kitchen and down the hall to a bedroom at the end which he opened, motioning for Yami to go inside. The room was pretty simple. There was a desk with a chair and lamp and some books on top as well as a bed and dresser and what looked like a gaming setup. Yugi dropped his bag, which he had picked up from outside his door, by the foot of his bed, flopping on to it. “What do you think?”

“I think everything in your time is amazing,” he said. Yugi pulled his knees up under his chin, watching him.

“Your time was amazing too,” he returned. Yami blinked at him but he continued. “Your people were able to do so much with what we consider so little now a days. In fact, after everything I’ve learned on this trip, I’m one hundred percent certain that the reason we are what we are is because of what you were able to do; the knowledge your people had has survived even if the culture hasn’t completely.” He paused. “I’m sorry. I made that worse than I meant to.” Yami shook his head.

“No, I thank you. Your words mean a lot to me.” They fell silent. After a few moments, Yugi shifted, heading over to his gaming system. He tossed a controller back to Yami who caught it awkwardly. He blinked. “What’s this?”

Yugi only smirked, “If you’re going to be in this time, I gotta teach you some of the perks. Video games being one.” He came back with his own controller. “Best two out of three?”

Never one to pass up a challenge, he smirked, “You’re on.”


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ladies and gentle, welcome to me moving away from The Reluctant God and more into a modern Millennium World.

The tall white haired man sipped his red wine slowly. He was extremely displeased with the turn of events; not only had he not gotten his hands on all seven of the Millennium Items but he was now  the owner of only one. It shimmered in the dim lighting when he brushed his hair off the side of his face. Where some days before a real eye had been, now sat the golden orb of the Millennium Eye, staring blankly into the world but not to those of the shadows. He could see the monsters spilling from the darkness. His butler approached. He pretended to be amused with his drink, swirling it around, instead of fascinated by the tendrils of darkness wrapping themselves around the other man, piercing painless into his heart. The man bowed.

“Sir, the information you requested has come in.” He stopped swirling his drink.

“Oh? And what good news do you have to deliver to me?” The man straightened.

“It seems that someone going by the name of Thief King has gotten a hold of both the rod and ring,” he stated. Fury rushed through his system and it took everything he had to not fling his cup across the room. Curses. He knew that annoying pest had something to do with the botched robbery; only one person could have been that annoying and more skilled than even his best hired hands. He sat his cup down.

“Send as many teams as possible to hunt him down,” he ordered. “I want those items in my possession as soon as possible.”

“Yes sir but there’s more you should know.” The man straightened.

“Well?”

“It seems that the Millennium Puzzle has come to Domino City as well. A boy named Yugi Muto is its guardian for now.” He hummed.

“Yugi huh? Get me everything you can.”

“Right away.” The butler bowed once more and left out of the room. He stood, staring out the window of his room. A smirk crossed his lips before he turned towards his bed for the evening.

*****

Yugi was not a fan of the first day of school. Outside of the fact that there was the changing of classes and the boring beginning of school assembly to attend to, there were also a long list of people that he would rather _not_ see. Still, he dressed in the morning with a smile on his face, waved good-bye to the three of them, and headed off to school. It was a silent journey. That was, until someone tapped him on the back. He looked up. Standing behind him was a girl. She was a good two heads taller than him with fair skin, dark brown hair, and the pink blazer of their school’s uniform. Anzu smiled at him, “Good morning Yugi. Welcome back.” He smiled at her.

“Morning Anzu. How was your break?”

“It was good. How was Egypt? Make any fascinating new discoveries?” She caught sight of the puzzle. “What’s that?” Yugi looked down.

“This? It’s…er… well… a souvenir I found.” She paused.

“Looks a bit tacky if you ask me.” He deflated a bit. She patted his head. “But it looks good on you.” He straightened, face flushing.

“Hey Anzu! Hurry up!  We don’t want to be late,” one of her friends called some feet in front of them. She waved to them before turning back to him.

“See you there Yugi.”

“Later,” he waved. She ran to catch up to the small group and he caught the tail end of their comments.

“Why were you walking with Muto, Anzu?”

“Yugi’s my childhood friend and he’s a really sweet guy.”

“Yeah, but a total loser. You could do so much better.” If she replied, he didn’t hear it as they had disappeared around the corner before him. He sighed, left alone again. It wasn’t much farther to the gates and, once arriving, he made sure to look around quickly to avoid the long list of people he didn’t want to see; wouldn’t his luck have it, as soon as he stepped through the gates, thinking he was home free, someone grabbed him by the shoulder. He spun. A tall blonde stood above him along with his equally tall, dark haired friend. Jounouchi and Honda were known for being trouble makers. Jounouchi, at least, was also known to have been part of one of the most aggressive gangs in town and it was well advised that one steered very clear of him. All last year, the two of them had terrorized him. They claimed they were trying to help him “man up” but really, all they did was bruise him regularly and leave him feeling worse off than ever before.

“Well, well, if it isn’t our friend Yugi,” Jounouchi jeered. His hand tightened on his shoulder, making it impossible for Yugi to flinch away. “Did any growing up over the summer there Yugi?”

"Of course he hasn’t,” Honda snorted. “He’s still the same pathetic little guy he’s always been.” He blinked, noticing the puzzle. He reached out to grab it but Yugi gasped, snatching it back and pulling out of Jounouchi’s grasp.

He glared at the two of them, “Leave my puzzle alone!” They blinked. Suddenly, the two of them were laughing, leaving him feeling… confused. Highly confused.

Honda suddenly reached out, grabbing him by the collar, “I take it back. It seems the little guy might have grown somewhat of a spine over the summer.” Yugi struggled against his grasp. Jounouchi watched this for a second before reaching out, putting his hand on Honda’s. He hesitated but released his capture. Yugi staggered back, nearly falling.

He did hit the ground a second later when Jounouchi punched him in the face and this time, he picked him up, snarling, “Doesn’t mean he should think he’s anything.” He threw him back. The two of them walked around and Yugi sat up, rubbing his cheek. Man that smarted. Several people whispered but none moved to help him; he grunted, staggering to his feet.

Nothing he wasn’t used to.

He said nothing to the people around him. He moved towards the front doors, stopping at his locker to change his shoes. He sighed as he closed the door.

Anzu stood there, her eyes glaring. He jerked away from her, “Anzu!” She reached out for his hand without a word, pulling him down the hallway. “Hey! Wait a second Anzu! I need to check my class…”

“You’re with me,” she confirmed. “I’ll take you there after we get that bruise on your cheek handled.” He blinked. Her grip tightened on his wrist. No one stood in their way. Not that Yugi could blame them; Anzu on a rampage was a pretty terrifying sight. Within a few minutes, they were in the nurse’s office but she was out so Anzu pushed him onto a nearby stool before looking for some medicine and a band aid. She prepped the alcohol, “Sorry Yugi. This is going to sting.” He hissed with the cotton ball touched the open wound. They sat in silence for a few minutes. “I’m sorry Yugi. I should’ve been there for you.” He shook his head which stopped her hand.

“It’s not your fault.”

“You’ve been having a hard time since we started here,” she whispered. “I knew last year too and yet… I haven’t done anything.”

“But you did help me,” he countered. “Remember when Jounouchi and Honda started bullying me in the classroom that one day? You stopped them like it was nothing!”

“That was pure luck,” she admitted, “I just got bored with playing basketball with the rest of the class.” He smiled at her.

“It still meant a lot to me.” She unwrapped the Band-Aid and stuck it carefully on his face. He winced before rubbing it. “Thanks.” She smiled at him. Her expression changed suddenly and she gasped, pointing, “Yugi! Your souvenir!” He blinked, looking down. His eyes went wide.

The middle piece was missing.


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hate to be that person but the action picks up in the next chapter!

Anzu had never in her life seen Yugi this furious before. He stormed down the hallway, looking for the two bullies who had attacked him on the first day of school. No longer did he look weak or intimidated. He looked… well, he actually looked intimidating himself. Whispers traveled at the sight. After not finding either of them in the school building, surprisingly moving through the floors really quickly, he started to head out into the school yard until she caught him by the wrist, “Yugi! Wait a second!” He spun. She almost dropped her grip.

Yugi’s expression was intense.

She changed her mind. She did let him go but her expression mirrored his now. Anzu put her hands on her hips, “Yugi Muto, you stop right now.”

“I have to get that piece back Anzu,” he snapped.

“And just how are you going about doing that? Are you going to punch those boys in the face like they did you earlier?” He faltered for a second but didn’t back down.

“I don’t know but I’m going to get it back.” She threw her hands in the air.

“Why is it so important to you? I thought this was just a souvenir!”

“I can’t explain it to you,” he countered. He suddenly really did look abashed, his hair dropping a bit like a wounded animal. “Sorry Anzu. I don’t…” He took a breath, seemingly returning to himself a bit as he finished, “Here’s not the place. I… don’t want to get you involved.” She paused for a second then flicked him on the forehead. She was strong enough that it left a bit of a red mark where she hit and he hissed, rubbing the spot.

“Little late for that,” she smiled softly, “You’re my friend Yugi. If you’re in trouble then I’ll be there to help you.” She winked. “Just promise me you’ll tell me the truth about this whole situation later okay?”

He nodded, “If you’ll come, I’ll show you at the shop.”

She held out a hand, “Sounds like a plan.” He slapped it and now, with a renewed sense of friendship, as odd as it was, the two of them headed out into the school yard in search of Jounouchi and Honda.

What they weren’t prepared for was finding the two of them behind the school building, out of sight of basically everyone else, bruised and bloody from another boy who stood easily three or four heads taller than Yugi, one or two for them. Jounouchi wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. Tetsu Ushio was a weird person. He knew his power and had a lot of influence as a “hall monitor” but everyone knew that he was corrupted, stealing from people of all kinds by pretending to be a friend to those who were weak and later demanding payment for his services. He sneered at the two on the ground, “Think it’s so fun anymore is it boys?”

“Nobody asked you Ushio,” Jounouchi spat. He sneered again, shooting his hand out to grab the injured boy by the collar, pulling him up to his face. His feet easily dangled over the ground.

“Why not? You apparently thought that it was fine to do it to Muto earlier this morning.”

Jounouchi kicked his legs but there was no energy behind them. He growled out, “What’s it matter to you? It’s not like you two are friends.”

“Ha! Like you two mutton heads think you could ever be better than me.” He pulled back with his free fist. A solid hit to Jounouchi’s face sent him flying back towards Honda. He landed with a grunt.

Anzu gasped, covering her face with her hands. Yugi, on the other hand, didn’t hesitate. He ran forward to the three of them and spread his arms wide, much to the amazement of the four people present. He glared up at the giant, “That’s enough! You’ve done enough damage Ushio.” He only smirked.

“Ah Yugi! So glad you’re here.” He moved forward, wrapping his arm around his neck and spinning him to face the other boys. Jounouchi and Honda tensed. They glared up at the two of them, their firery spirits clearly not diminished as he continued with, “I saw what happened this morning. Thought I’d give you hand in cleaning up these two.” Yugi glared. He pulled out of his grasp, facing him down again.

“I don’t want this,” Yugi snarled. Ushio blinked. “Sure, neither of them should have done what they did but that doesn’t mean they deserve the same treatment.” Now the taller man was glaring at him.

“Come on Yugi. They don’t deserve your sympathy!”

“And I’m not giving it to them,” he returned. “That doesn’t mean I have to sit by and watch this happen.” Ushio tisked. Without warning, he pulled back, sending Yugi flying into the other guys. Anzu screamed but Jounouchi and Honda were sitting up now and enough to catch him, keeping him from landing against the brick wall behind them or even on the ground. Ushio tisked again and put his hands in his pocket, stalking away.

“This is boring now,” he growled. Anzu moved out of the way, sticking her tongue out at him when he wasn’t looking. She ran forward. The three picked themselves up from the ground, dusting off their uniforms. She gave them all a good once over. Sighing, she ran a hand through her hair.

“We’re never going to make it to class at this rate are we?” The three of them shared a look before abashedly scratching their cheeks.

“Don’t think so,” Jounouchi noted. He paused before bowing his head a bit, “Hey Yugi? Sorry man.” Honda nodded, appropriately looking ashamed as well.

“Yeah. Sorry,” he added. “We’ve really done you wrong.” Yugi paused before nodding.

“It’s alright,” he confirmed. “I think you guys have had enough for one day.”

“All of you have,” Anzu noted. “Let’s head to the nurse’s office. We’ll have to get you all bandaged up before class starts.” Jounouchi waved a hand.

“I got something to do first,” he said. Before anyone could stop him, he took off, running in the direction of the building. Yugi and Anzu blinked. Honda rubbed the back of his neck. He only smiled though and didn’t say anything even though he knew full well where his best friend was heading. Making amends was an understatement. He followed the two of them back in and, thirty minutes later, a soaking wet Jounouchi came back, holding out his hand for Yugi to take the piece of his puzzle back even though nothing was said between them. Yugi’s eyes softened. He put the piece right back where it belonged but he held his breath, uncertain if it would light up again like it had the first time; he released it when it didn’t.

Yugi let the puzzle fall gently to his chest. The four of them walked out of the room together, heading towards their first class of the day.

*****

The bell over the door to the game shop ringed and Grandpa smiled, standing up from where he had bent down behind a display case. He nearly dropped the box in his hand. Yugi stood smiling at him but his face was…

“Yugi! My gracious what happened?” Anzu leaned out from behind him with a smile.

 “Hey Mr. Muto,” she chirped. He blinked at her, surprised at the set of them. Yugi pulled his bag off of his back, heading to the stairs to the top part of the home. Grandpa followed.

“It’s good to see you Anzu but Yugi….”

“I’m home Grandpa,” he too chirped. “And I’d rather explain it at one time. Are Malik and Yami upstairs?” He nodded. The old man shuffled his way to the door where he flipped the open sign to closed before following his grandson and his friend upstairs. His first stop was to his room where he dropped his bag. Anzu left hers as well. Together, they went back to the joint kitchen and dining area where she found two men she had never seen before. One had hair very similar to Yugi’s and the other had off white hair. Both had deeply tanned skin. Her face flushed when the one like Yugi looked up with deep red eyes. Yugi held out his hand. “Anzu, this is Yami and Malik Ishtar. They’re going to be staying with us for a while.” The two nodded their heads as she bowed. “This is my friend Anzu.” She bowed to the two of them. Malik pointed at him with the fork.

“You going to share what happened to your face there or are we going to have to guess,” Malik asked. Yugi scratched his unbruised cheek.

“Uh well….”

“A couple of bullies ganged up on Yugi,” Anzu immediately cut in, filtering nothing, “And they stole a piece of that puzzle around his neck.” Yami and Malik stood instantly.

Grandpa put a hand on his shoulder, “Yugi! Why didn’t you tell me?” He patted the old man’s hand with a reassuring smile.

“I’m alright Grandpa, promise.” Yami slammed his hands on the counter. Yugi flinched.

“How does this look like you’re alright,” he snapped. Anzu flinched. She felt a chill shoot down her spine at his expression. It was menacing.

“It’s alright,” Yugi soothed. “It’s all been handled. I don’t think they’ll be messing with me anymore.” Malik sighed, running a hand through his hair.

“You have to be careful Yugi. Especially with that puzzle.” He nodded, squeezing the edges tightly.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

“Hey, it wasn’t completely his fault,” Anzu defended, “Besides, he went immediately to get the piece back as soon as he realized it was missing.”

Yami eyed him, “Nothing happened?”

Yugi shook his head, “Nothing.” Yami sighed, relieved.

“Then the puzzle really has chosen you.” Anzu blinked.

She leaned in closer to him, “Is this part of what you were going to explain to me?”

Malik sat back down, “You sure you really want to know? Once you do, there’s going to be no backing out.”

Anzu stood up straight, staring him down; he, however, practically didn’t respond to the expression but Yugi really couldn’t blame him. He probably had the best training in the way of his sister.

“Yugi’s my best friend. I think I can handle whatever he’s going through,” she answered. The four people in the know shared a knowing look before Malik sighed, leaning his head back.

“Better take a seat. This is going to take a while to explain.” Anzu moved to one of the available seats where the four of them spent the next hour explaining exactly it was that Yugi, Yami, and Malik had to do. When they finished, the room fell into silence. Anzu took a breath. She smiled at the four of them.

“Alright. Where do we start?”

Yugi blinked, “You… you’re just going to accept all of this? Just like that?” She nodded.

“I trust you Yugi and if you’re saying it’s a thig then obviously it’s a thing I need to believe.” She laced her fingers under her chin. “So what do we do now?”

“Now, we go looking,” Malik clarified. “And I think our best bet will be to start at the Domino Museum where the robbery occurred. Isis got us clearance to the artifacts room. They’ll be expecting us sometime in the near future anyway.” Yugi stood, determination flashing in his eyes.

“Guess tonight would be better than anything,” he commanded, “Let’s go.”


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dudes, I've had the most productive day of my summer. I've cleaned my room, washed all my clothing, remade my bed, cleaned my kitchen... I'm on a roll and I didn't forget to update! I... What is this? I'm... managing?

The bus ride to the Domino Museum was faster than Yami expected. He just… He wasn’t prepared for the inside though. Generations of various cultures from what he assumed would be from around the world were exposed for the many greasy face people who starred in… disrespectfully was the only thing he could think.

To say he was extremely displeased was an understatement.

He now understood why it was that both Isis and Yugi had apologized to him. Even though he accepted it, he hadn’t really been aware of the scope. It made him rub his stomach. Malik spoke to the woman at the counter for a few seconds before coming back to them, “The curator is on his way. He’ll meet us in the Ancient Egyptian exhibit.”

“Is that where they were going to display the Items,” Yugi asked. He nodded.

“Were being the key word. He’ll take us back to the storeroom; the police have already finished their investigation here so it’s clear to go back in.” Yugi nodded. As the four of them started further in, Anzu gently reached out and touched his shoulder. Yami flinched. He turned, finding her eyes scrutinizing him. He squirmed.

She smiled at him, “Yami is what Yugi called you right?” He nodded. She released him, standing straight. “This has to be uncomfortable for you.”

He blinked, “What do you mean?” She motioned to the room around them. They had already passed through several different cultures; pottery, what remained of clothes, statues, and even… the remains of those who came before, were everywhere. He swallowed hard especially at these, diverting his eyes. Anzu starred though for a few seconds. He licked his lips. “Yes, it is,” he admitted softly. She looked back at him. Yami kept his eyes to the ground, “My people.... Our beliefs are so different than these. These people have been disrespected.” She placed a hand back on his arm.

“I can only imagine,” she started, “what it is you’re going through. I’m sure ‘I’m sorry’ won’t even begin to cover this.” He waved a hand.

“Thank you.” She nodded.                                              

“We better catch up to those two.” Yami’s eyes shot around the room one last time. Together, the two of them did catch up just in time to hear Malik explaining a little bit of Ancient burial processes to Yugi who nodded, adding softly what he remembered of the tomb Yami had emerged from. Guess that should’ve been some hint that it wasn’t really a burial site. He nodded. Yugi turned as they walked up, smiling brightly at him. Anzu didn’t miss the light blush that crossed his cheeks. She started to ask him something when a small, hunched over man with a balding spot on his head, approached, asking if they were the representatives from Egypt under Director Isis to which Malik responded. He held out his hand. Following him, the group found themselves walking through a plain back hallway. The hairs on Yami’s arm stood up.

Something wasn’t right about it. Malik looked back over his shoulder, as did Yugi. All three could feel it, the creeping, disgusting feeling that they weren’t alone, and they tensed, waiting to see if something was going to go appear from the shadows. They reached a room with a large neutral color door. They held their breath. The curator opened it.

The inside was completely dark. Only the light from where they stood filtered in, leaving a large rectangle of light with their shadows could be seen. The curator reached inside. The room lit up; all they could see were carefully labelled boxes. He wrung his hands, “As we already told the officers, none of the alarms triggered; it was only when we came in to begin setting up the new exhibit did we find that anything was wrong.”

Malik nodded, “Then whoever did this was a professional then?” The curator nodded.

He wrung his hands tightly to together. “That is their assumption,” the curator said. Malik nodded, looking around the room. A flashing red light caught his attention and he pointed to the camera.

“Is there any way we can see that camera footage?” The older man shook his head.

“Afraid not. We’ve already supplied our copies to the officers. They haven’t returned them yet.” Malik sighed.

“Alright then. Thank you for your help.” He paused. “We’re going to look around for a bit and then leave. Would that be alright?” There was a bit of hesitation in the older man but he eventually nodded again, leaving them with a bow. Malik shut the door. He turned, facing Yugi and Yami seriously, eyes narrowed, “You sense that?”

“It’s creepy,” Yugi confirmed. He ran his hands up and down his arms, “And cold.”

Yami’s eyes narrowed. He stepped further into the room, raising an arm with an order of, “Get behind me.” Malik grabbed Anzu, pulling her back. Yugi started to follow but a hand shot out for his wrist and he froze, turning to face Yami who starred into the darkness, his eyes wide. “I need your help,” he managed through gritted teeth but it was Malik who told him what it was he said. His grip grew tighter. Yugi’s eyes widened and he pulled a bit with a hiss. Yami remembered himself for a second, long enough to release him with a soft, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s alright,” he returned. He moved closer, straightening. Yugi wasn’t too sure what he could do to help since he was new to this but he stared forward, determined.

The shadows shifted. They morphed, growing, and becoming solid as they reached from their hiding spots. The four of them leaned away. Anzu had to fight down a scream. Not that it was needed; the noise that grew with them was metallic in nature before it became more… _real_. Yugi squeezed Yami’s hand. He only had a few seconds to respond and he did, by raising his free hand. The symbol of the Eye appeared on his forehead, making him look rather menacing and otherworldly; he spoke in his native tongue, “This is shadow game.”

“A what,” Yugi shouted.

“A shadow game,” Malik clarified over the roaring noise that shook the room, “It’s basically a game that deals in the darkness. Those monsters reside there.”

“That clarified nothing,” Anzu returned. Malik smiled at her cheekily but threw his arm out when one of the monsters attempted to catch her; he threw it off with a hiss as blood trickled down from the open puncture. Yami’s eyes went wide and he raised his hand again, giving a sharp order for something to appear. The Millennium Puzzle glowed. Yugi had to squeeze his eyes shut. Malik threw an arm to cover Anzu again. They crouched down. When it was done, they looked back up to find that they were no longer alone.

A tall man had appeared at Yami’s summons. He wore a full purple robe, carrying in one hand a teal colored staff with a jewel in one end. He smiled down at his master but the expression did nothing to ease Yami’s worries; if anything, it placed something new and unsettling in his chest.

A feeling.

Like he recognized his face.

He pushed the feeling away for the moment, guiding with his hand again, “Dark Magician! Dark magic attack!” He raises his staff. The world changes a bit, becoming darker and warmer, as a blast proceeds forward into the monsters.

It didn’t hit.

The shadow monsters merely moved out of the way, making the attack dissipate on the wall. The Dark Magician tisked. Yami’s eyes followed them.

“How are we supposed to hit a shadow,” Yugi asked. Yami gritted his teeth.

“They’re monsters,” Yami said, his eyes scanning the room. “And like all monsters, they can be defeated… with the help of the Millennium Puzzle.”

“What?”

He looked down at the puzzle sitting around Yugi’s neck. It flashed in the flickering lightening. “The puzzle and the other items were born of the same darkness; they are all connected and so, the puzzle can contain them.”

“Great but how?” Yugi bit his bottom lip. There was no denying how scared he currently was.

Yami turned back, observing the purple man attempting to handle the shadows as they attacked. One caught the monster on the shoulder and he groaned. Yami hissed, reaching up to his matching shoulder. Yugi squeezed his hand.

“Are you alright,” he asked. Yami nodded his head, looking back up.

“We’ve got to corner them,” he ordered, “Or trick them that way.”

“That’s a bit easier said than done,” Malik cut in. Anzu swung a staff she had found over his head; he barely ducked in enough time and she offered him an apologetic look. “Any plans?”

“Right now,” Yugi shouted, “It’s not get hit.” Yami tugged him out of the way of a monster, ghost like and pale, that shot from the shadows, aiming straight for him. He wrapped his arms protectively around Yugi. It was hard for him to miss the completely earthy scent coming off of the man holding him. This made his heart pound. More so than the monsters probably. He swallowed hard until Yami released him.

“You alright,” he asked softly. Yugi nodded since his words seemed to be completely out of his reach.  Yami’s face softened at the news and he released his hold on him but not his hand. The Dark Magician was currently fighting a monster for his staff; Yami shouted up, getting his attention to which he pushed the ghost off before floating down to join his master. He spoke something to him. He nodded, flying up again, and using his staff to make a hole so that he could escape to the outside of the attacking and, once there, he raised his staff, readying for another attack. This all relied on timing.

If the Dark Magician could just shoot at the exact moment when the ghosts were going to attack….

Anzu screamed for the two of them. Yami spun. A ghost had managed to sneak around them, heading straight for Yugi but there was no time for the boy to respond.

He spun the two of them.

Yugi fell behind him.

Yami raised a hand.

He wasn’t braced.

There was no preparing for this.

The ghost smacked hard into his outstretched hand, snapping it back.

Yami flew backwards.

He smacked hard into a set of crates. Several tumbled down to the floor, missing him by mere inches; Yugi screamed for him but Yami didn’t move. His face stayed down behind his arm. Yugi couldn’t seem to move fast enough. Time seemed… so slow. Like each step was taking him further and further away from him. By the time he reached him, it was clear that he had smacked his head into the crates, a small cut oozed blood from his temple and his eyes went wide.

How could one body feel so much fear?

Yugi shakily reached out for him. He was still warm though which eased his worry a bit but not completely. He still felt cold.

Malik and Anzu tried to reach them but were blocked. The ghosts seemed to grow in number. The room nearly spun white. Their cries sounded distant. All he could hear was the muffled pounding of his heart.

The Dark Magician was gone, no longer able to maintain his form in this world without the aid of his master.

Yugi stood on shaky legs. Anger coursed through his blood and he glared up at the monsters. He gripped the puzzle tightly, “I won’t let you hurt him anymore! I won’t let you hurt anyone!”

They answered his cry with one of their own. They spun high into the air for a brief moment before shooting down towards him, ready to go for the kill.

He didn’t look away.

A burst of light emerged from the center of his puzzle and he stared at it in shock, gasping, until it finally became too much. Malik and Anzu gasped as well. They covered their faces, hiding from the blinding light until….

All was quiet.

Yugi opened his eyes slowly. The room… was empty. There were no more shadows except for the normal ones or monsters going for their lives. It was almost like they hadn’t been nearly killed in a twisted shadow game. He released the breath he’d been holding. A quick look told him that the other two were fine if a bit banged and bruised and he quickly returned his attention to his fallen friend. Yami groaned when he gently touched his shoulder. Yugi couldn’t help but sigh. He helped him sit up. The cut wasn’t as bad as he thought it had been but it still needed to be addressed; he reached up slowly, tracing a soft line near it. Yami hissed. He pulled back his hand, abashed, “I’m sorry.”

He shook his head, “Don’t be. I’m alright.” He blinked. “You?” He nodded.

“Thanks to you, I’m alright.” They smiled. Malik and Anzu walked up. He wiped some of the blood from his injury off on his jacket.

“That was a trap,” Malik spit. “Whoever robbed this place knew how to set a shadow game!”

“Which means they’re chosen by a Millennium Item,” Anzu asked. Malik nodded.

“Possibly.” Malik kicked one of the crates. “But if this wasn’t the most useless visit in the history of the world, I don’t know what is!” Yami smiled.

“Not completely,” he breathed. They turned as he pointed to his head, “I got a few memories back.” Yugi blinked, suppressing the need to give him the tightest hug ever.

Anzu knelt next to him, “Really? What do you remember?” He paused.

“I remember,” he breathed, “leaving the Palace. We travelled across the sands to some rocky cliffs and… well... “ His eyes dropped a bit. “My mentor Siamun told me that they needed someone to guard the items in the future.” Malik nodded.

“I’m sure you’re happy to have them back.” He nodded.

“Yeah.” Anzu stood, dusting off her knees. Yugi stood as well. He held out a hand and Yami gratefully took it. He couldn’t help but stare into Yugi’s face as he helped him stand. Had Yugi’s eyes always been so brilliantly purple? He smiled.

“Well, I vote we go home,” she noted. “I’m tired after all this and it doesn’t look like we’re going to find anything else.”

“Agreed,” Malik said. He stretched as the four of them walked out of the room. They didn’t see the curator again. No one stopped them. They simply made their way out, caught the bus, and headed home.

Well, almost. They ended up going a few times around as the lot of them fell asleep by accident.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Action last chapter, drama this one.

Despite their best efforts, time passed in a blur with no new information.

Yami tapped his fingers impatiently on the table top. His eyes scanned over the computer screen; Malik had introduced him to the modern convenience some days before and he was reading everything he could. The world was certainly fascinating. It was amazing how much information there was and how much he could gather at one time (save for when someone needed to use the telephone). He scrolled down the news page. There was a little information about the robbery at the museum but nothing mentioned about what exactly it was that was taken or their importance to keeping the world from ending, and he closed the tab in frustration, pushing his chair back with his face looking at the ceiling. He closed his eyes.

They were doing everything they could think of. Searching the Internet, going out in public. Yami was amazed at the number of people that lived in such a small space like Domino City but he assumed that if Egypt had had half of the technology that they did, then they would have been similar. That was not to say they were small in the first place. There had been a growth in the population after all but it seemed dwarfed compared to these modern people. Malik had patted his shoulder.

“Inoculations. One of the greatest inventions ever,” he explained, “Basically kept humans from dying from common things.”

Yami had to look up the word “inoculations.” He also had to not cringe at the idea even though he was pretty sure Malik was considering talking Grandpa into taking him as soon as possible to get his “updated.”

Something cool touched his forehead and he opened his eyes. Speaking of the devil, Malik stood above him with a bottle of tea which he offered to him. He took it gratefully. The other sat in the additional chair beside him with a grunt, opening a bottle of his own, “How goes the search?”

“Not good,” Yami admitted. “There’s nothing else about the break in. They’re pretty much keeping everything on ‘the down low.’” Malik smirked.

“Good choice in words.” He frowned. “We’re going to have to do something and soon.”

Yami eyed the wall clock, “We should go soon.” Malik narrowed his eyes. He pointed at the boy who blinked, a little confused at the gesture.

“Before that though, you’re going to quit running away from Yugi.”

“I have no idea what you’re…”

“Save it for someone who’s ignorant,” he cut off. He took a sip out of his bottle again and he leveled his expression at him again. “You’ve been avoiding him for a week now and in case you aren’t aware of how that’s going, Yugi’s gotten upset. He thinks he did something wrong.” Yami’s face paled.

“He hasn’t…!”

“Don’t tell me that,” Malik cut him off again. “Yugi’s the one who needs to hear it. Look, here’s what he’s been seeing: He comes home, says hi, and you run away! He tries to ask how things are going and I have to explain! We go out to search, he offers to help, and you short him by telling him to stay home.”

“I’m only trying to protect him,” Yami snapped. The room fell quiet as he looked down at his hands, squeezing the bottle a bit. “I’m just… I don’t want him to get hurt.”

Malik rolled his eyes, “In case you missed it, Yugi was the one to protect you. You and I were the only two to walk away with any scratches the last time.”

“But it could easily be that he does too!”

“And you think he doesn’t know that?” Yami fell silent again. Malik sighed, slapping his forehead, “Never have I met any people denser than the two of you! Look, if you’re that concerned about all of this, why don’t you just _talk_ to him? Yugi’s got a good head on his shoulders. He’ll listen. Hell, he’ll probably come up with a plan to make sure everyone gets out safe the next time anyway if he hasn’t already.” He stood, throwing his bottle into a nearby trash can. “Just… look, just talk to him. Promise me you will?” Yami nodded. Without thinking, Malik reached out, rubbing the top of his head which sort of caught him by surprise; he looked up, wide eyed.

“Let’s go,” Malik said softly.

He looked around, “But what about Yugi? Aren’t I go to speak to him?” Malik shot him a cheeky grin.

“Yugi’s going out with his friends remember? He told us before he left today.” He nodded to the door. “Let’s go.”  Yami’s face softened and he nodded, reaching for his coat on the way out, a sense of relief washing through him as they stepped into the cooling fall afternoon.

*****

Burger World was just as busy as it ever was. People of all ages and types moved about, trying to get their food before either joining the crowd of people already eating or leaving with their goods. Yugi didn’t feel particularly hungry which was odd considering that, one, Burger World was his favorite restaurant and, two, he had barely eaten anything in the last couple of days. He rubbed his stomach. Maybe he was getting sick? Anzu eyed him as she chewed her fries slowly. Her expression didn’t change. She was worried, that much was obvious but she wasn’t quite certain how to ask about the changes she was seeing in her childhood best friend. Jounouchi and Honda, oddly now seemingly friends, didn’t seem to notice anything wrong. They wolfed down their food in an eating contest, eventually arguing at one point over a burger that landed in between them without an owner; it went flying into the sky and landed on the tray of another customer who looked around shocked before shrugging and walking off with the burger. The two of them sat down with a groan. Anzu rolled her eyes at this. Leaning closer to Yugi, she whispered, “Is everything alright?”

He looked up quickly, surprised, “What?” Jounouchi and Honda finally calmed down, eyeing him seriously.

“Yeah Yug, you’ve been looking pretty down this past week,” Jounouchi noted.

“What’s up man? We want to help,” Honda added. Anzu raised an eyebrow. Maybe the two of them weren’t as knuckleheaded as she had guessed… She shook her head. Nah, they were definitely still knuckleheaded but this was pretty sweet of them to be concerned about him; especially after how they had originally treated him.

He looked around at all three of them, “Thanks you guys. It’s nothing. Promise.”

Anzu’s face fell, “Yugi….”

He waved his hands, “Seriously, I promise!”

Jounouchi reached over, poking him in the face, “Don’t forget we’re here man.” Honda snorted.

“That’s rich coming from you.”

The blonde reached over, hooking his arm around his friend’s neck, causing him to choke a bit. He tried his best to throw him off. Jounouchi tightened his hold though and tears poked at the corner of his eyes. He made a fist with the other, “Da heck you talkin’ about man? A true man knows when to tell his friends what’s botherin’ him!” Yugi chuckled for possibly the first time that week.

“Thanks guys. I’ll keep it in mind.” His face softened. “I.. It’s something I have to handle on my own but knowing that you guys have my back, well, it gives me the strength to do what I need to do.” They smiled at each other before giving him a cheerful, “Good luck.” Shortly after, they cleaned up their spot and headed out. Anzu and Yugi walked a little in front of Jounouchi and Honda. The tall blonde kept his hands behind his head. The hairs on his neck kept standing up. It was a feeling that he was all too familiar with; the one of blood lust that came from someone wanting to beat you close to a pulp, if not dead. He casually turned to look behind them.

“Hey guys, I don’t want to startle you,” he lowered his voice, walking closer, “but there’s a couple of goons in black following us. Don’t turn around though,” he ordered as both Yugi and Anzu started to do just that. They stopped but could still see over their shoulders. It was true; there were two rather large men wearing almost out of the place black suits with sunglasses even though the sun was disappearing over the horizon. They moved with ease through the crowd of people. When they couldn’t, they just growled at the person they had hit who scuttled out of the way. Yugi and Anzu shared a look.

“You don’t think…?”

“Yeah, I do think,” Yugi replied. Anzu’s face paled. Honda and Jounouchi raised their eyebrows, confused, moving in closer. Yugi looked at the two of them. “Look, we don’t have time to explain but we’ve got to get away from those two.”

“Say no more,” Honda noted. He straightened. Jounouchi smirked at the two of them.

“Get ready to run,” he ordered. They blinked but nodded, waiting. Honda turned when they passed a trash can and he picked it up, throwing it with a grunt at the two men, who weren’t ready, caught it, but fell backwards. When they finally got up, the four were running down the sidewalk. They turned sharply into an alley. Jounouchi took the lead.

He’d spent a lot of hours in these spaces. He easily took the lead, ordering the group to watch their footing and to duck at certain places so he could toss something backwards, just to slow them down or anything. Finally, he pulled Anzu into a darkened doorway, motioning for her to be quiet. Honda picked up Yugi and did the same. They stayed flat against the wall, their hearts pounding erratically as they waited, listening. The footsteps got louder.

Closer….

Closer....

Closer…..  

The two men appeared. They looked disheveled but, thankfully, didn’t stop. Believing the group had run on, they continued. It was only when they could no longer hear their footsteps did the group release a sigh of relief and Honda finally let Yugi go. Jounouchi wiped his brow with the back of his hand, “Man that was a close one.” He eyed the two of them. “You two going to share what that was about?”

“Dude, you really want to ask about that right here where those guys might come back to find us,” Honda asked. Jounouchi scratched his cheek.

“Good point.”

Yugi straightened, “Let’s head to my grandpa’s game shop. We can talk there.”

“Yeah,” Anzu added, “We probably need to let Malik and Yami know what happened.” The two outsiders shared a look but followed their friends back with no questions.

Thankfully, no strange men in suits seemed to be running after them this time.

*****

“I’m home Grandpa,” Yugi shouted, pushing the door open, “and I brought a few friends!” The elderly man stood up from behind the counter he had been working behind and he smiled brightly to all of them.

“Hello,” he chirped. “Welcome back Yugi. What good timing. Yami and Malik just came back from going on a… tour of the city.” Yugi waved a hand.

“It’s alright Grandpa.” He held out his hands to the boys behind him, “This is Honda Hiroto and Katsuya Jounouchi.” The three people bowed their heads towards each other, mumbling a greeting. Yugi scratched his cheek. “I’m afraid they’ve been dragged into this too.” His face turned serious.

“Oh my. What happened?”

“We’ll explain upstairs,” he clarified. “Best if everyone hears it at the same time.” Grandpa nodded.

“I’ll close up the shop and meet you upstairs.” Yugi nodded, gave Grandpa a kiss on the cheek, and lead his friends upstairs. They went immediately to shared dining area where the other two residents of the home looked up, mildly surprised at the number of people coming in.

Malik raised a hand, “Yo Yugi. Let me guess. They’re involved too?” He blushed.

“Afraid so. Jounouchi, Honda, this Malik Ishtar,” the older looking Egyptian raised his hand in greeting, “and Yami.” The ancient Egyptian merely nodded his head. The two of them had to do a double take between Yugi and him but after a few seconds, they let it go without question, bowing their heads in greeting. Yugi’s eyes narrowed. Grandpa came in after them just as he stated, “We were followed today. Jounouchi and Honda were able to help us get  a way which is why I’d like them involved.”

Malik snorted. “You boys going to be able to handle this?” They narrowed their eyes.

“Of course we are,” Honda hissed.

“Yugi and Anzu are our friends,” Jounouchi stated confidently, “Of course we can handle anything that involves them. I’m not leaving them in this clearly dangerous situation alone.” Malik blinked. He ran a hand through his hair, laughing.

“Yugi,” he managed out, “I don’t know how you managed it but you find the weirdest friends!” He smirked in return.

“So what does that make you?”

Malik paused before blushing a bit, “Touché.” He cleared his throat. “You two better sit down. This is going to be a rollercoaster of a ride….” They looked at each other for the uncountable time but they nodded, sitting as ordered, and, boy, what a ride it turned out to be.

Jounouchi felt numb. It was almost impossible to believe. Honda too but he shook his head, growing serious, “All of this is real? Are you guys being for real?”

Malik crossed his arms, leaning back in his chair, “Absolutely.”

“Trust me,” Yami mumbled, “It’s a bit hard to be on the other end too. The modern era is… mind blowing.”

“Totally understandable,” Honda nodded. Jounouchi shook his head. Seemingly coming back to himself, he stood, putting a finger to his chin. A cheeky grin crossed Honda’s face and he quickly elbowed him in the side, “Uh-oh. He’s got his thinking face on. Everyone run before it explodes.”

“Ha-ha,” he snipped. He dropped his hand, looking at those in the room around him, “I think I might actually have some for you guys.” They blinked at him before a collective “What?” rang out the room. He flinched. “Yeah. I got a few… friends who run in the underground and they’ve been telling me that there’s this white haired freak running around with something gold on ‘im. Rumor has it,” he dropped his voice, “You see him and your life is over a bit early. Couple of guys have already gone missing.” Malik hummed.

“Any of the items would have the potential to get rid of a human easily,” he mused. “But without confirmation, we can’t say what it is.”

“What should we do then,” Yami asked. Malik paused for a second before he straightened, looking Jounouchi seriously in the face.

“Jounouchi, is there any way you can introduce me to these friends of yours?” He blinked.

“Sure but it’s going to take a couple of days.” Jounouchi paused. “These aren’t some guys you want to just run around with. You sure you want to do this?” Malik nodded.

“Yes, I’ve got a plan.”


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know whatever they have planned, it's a horrible idea.

Jounouchi smirked proudly as he walked into the Kame Game shop. His clothes were disheveled and he looked like he had seen better days but he had found the information he was looking for. It had come at a price. Everything, he knew, came at a certain price, mainly his pride. He didn’t want to think too much on it. This time  required that he not only beg in front of his old gang, on all fours like a dog, but then he’d had to endure being dragged behind a motor bike until the boss felt pleased with his punishment. Grandpa met him at the door. The older man looked him over before pointing to a stool behind the counter, ordering, “Take a seat.” Jounouchi blinked but did so. Grandpa pulled out a first aid kit from one of the nearby cabinets, setting it down on the countertop, before pulling out the things he needed to help clean the boy up. He shook his head, “I thank you for trying to help but you really need to be careful.”

“Ah this is nothing,” he returned. Grandpa probably dabbed the cotton ball onto one of his open scratches harder than he needed to. Jounouchi hissed.

“Still, you need to be careful. What do you think your family would feel if you didn’t come home?”

Jounouchi’s face twisted, “Honestly? My old man wouldn’t care.”

Grandpa huffed, “Fine, then at least think of your friends. Yugi is going to be highly upset to see this.” He motioned up and down at him. Jounouchi scratched his cheek.

“Sure thing Gramps. I’ll get it in mind.” Jounouchi held up a free hand suddenly, greeting the set of footsteps coming from upstairs, “Yo Yug.” Yugi, dressed in a tank top and his leather pants, stopped short on the stair, shook his head, and came forward, frowning. Jounouchi felt himself falter at the pure worry in his eyes.

“What happened,” Yugi demanded.

He scratched his cheek. “It’s nothing. Just a few bumps and scratches.” Jounouchi stood up from the stool, “But I got good news for ya. I got some info on that guy that Malik wanted.

Yugi brightened, gripping both of his arms as he practically shouted, “Does that mean that you know where he’s going?” He nodded.

“I got it figured out.” Jounouchi looked at the nearest wall clock. “And we’re going to have to go quickly. These guys aren’t particularly happy with lateness.

Yugi released him. The same gut twisting worry that had followed him in Egypt returned. If there one thing this who fiasco had taught him, it was to trust his gut. “It still don’t like this,” he said. Jounouchi reached out, rubbing Yugi’s head and the boy grunted, “Hey!”

When Jounouchi released him, Yugi was surprised by the softened expression he found on his face. “Don’t worry,” he promised, “I got a friend who’s said he’d help keep an eye on Malik.” Yugi turned to head towards the stairs. He had to bite back a _I hope so_ as he lead the way to the kitchen area. Jounouchi could easily see the worry sitting behind his eyes but he attempted to hide it by keeping his lips tight and his brow not as knitted. “Hey Yug? Everything’s going to be alright.”

There was a pause. “I trust you,” he said. They came out at the top of the stairs as Yami was coming from one of the side rooms. Yugi froze for a second, dropping his gaze. Yami smiled at the two of them, waving a hand in greeting to Jounouchi who returned it. The blonde didn’t miss Yugi’s expression. He also didn’t miss the way the boy stuttered in greeting him or how he did his best to avoid making eye contact and a sly thought crossed his mind but he kept it to himself for the time being. Malik came out from the bathroom, drying his hair. His face lit up at Jounouchi.

“Yo Jounouchi,” Malik greeted, “You here with good news I hope?” He raised a hand.

“About as good as you can think joining a gang could be.” He wrapped the towel around his neck, nodding.

“Alright. I get my stuff and we can head out.” Yugi’s head snapped up. His eyes were wide and as Malik started to walk by him, Yugi reached out, gently catching his arm. He stopped but didn’t look down.

Yugi licked his lips, “Be careful Malik.” He smiled.

“I’ll keep in touch. Promise.” Yugi let him go. He walked past and into his room to gather his stuff. Yami touched Yugi’s shoulder.  They said nothing but the expressions that passed between them were soft and comforting even if they did nothing to alleviate their fears.

*****

Wandering through the daylight hours without a guide was a bad idea; while Yami had managed to memorize a couple of maps and walkways, he was still overwhelmed by the modern world and took to spending his days more on the Internet, trying to at least build his basic worldly knowledge. When this got boring, he started wandering downstairs in the daylight hours. The game shop was never that busy and on its best days, there was maybe ten customers in the whole place. Grandpa took advantage of the situation. Yami was promptly given an apron and the task of stocking shelves. He even got the chance to help customers on the occasion and it left him smiling when they walked away.

It also gave the two of them a chance to talk.

They were working on a shelf of new games. It was a peaceful and slow afternoon; there were no customers in the store. Yami took a game from Grandpa as he handed them up. Grandpa cleared his throat, “Yami, I have a question for you.” He took another box.

“Yes sir?”

The older man’s face twisted, “Yami, there’s something that’s been bothering me.” He paused. “When this is all over... well, what is going to happen to you?” It was his turn to freeze. What would happen when his mission was over? Had he ever been told?

“I… I don’t know.” Grandpa smiled.

“Do you like this era?” He nodded.

“It’s interesting.” He put the next set of boxes up. “I… yeah, I miss my family and everything but I can’t imagine myself in another time.” Grandpa nodded. He reached up, patting the boy’s arm before moving around him.

“I hope,” he muttered, “that no hearts get broken in the process.”

Yami said nothing but he squeezed his fists. He hoped it was true.


	19. Chapter 19

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dun... dun... DUN! :D

“I don’t like this. Not one bit,” Yugi said. His legs were stretched out in front of him as their group sat on the roof of the school building, taking advantage of the nice day. A gentle breeze ruffled their hair. The puzzle around his neck sparkled in the sunlight. Anzu nodded in agreement before taking a bite of her food. Honda, concentrated on the drink he had, didn’t respond and Jounouchi stared off across the horizon, gripping the fence for a second, before punching it and sitting down with a grunt.

“I don’t like it either,” he confirmed, “According to the boys, Malik was doing just fine, even ranking up pretty quickly. The boss liked him. Then one day, rumors started flyin’ about that white haired guy again and he took off. That’s the last anyone heard or saw of him.” He sighed, snatching a drink from Honda who looked stunned for a second as he finished it off. “They’re afraid that Malik might have….”

“Don’t say that,” Anzu chided. Yugi already looked pale but he was sure the idea that Jounouchi was hitting at was making him look even worse. He squeezed his lunch box until his knuckles turned white. Jounouchi crushed the juice box he had finished. Honda glared but said nothing. Yugi took a breath.

“We can’t just sit here,” he stated, “We need to go looking for him. Malik’s our friend. Right?” The group nodded. “Great then we can’t leave this up to a game of ifs. We need to make sure he is alright and if not, we need to get him out of danger.”

“That’s easier said than done Yugi,” Honda noted. “Where do we even begin to start looking for him? Domino isn’t exactly a small city and we can’t spend days searching all of it.” Yugi turned to Jounouchi.

“Do your friends have any idea where he was last seen?” He paused.

“Not sure but I can find out real quick this afternoon. How about we meet up at the game shop? I’m sure Yami’ll want to be involved in this too.”

“Excellent,” Yugi replied. A glance at the time told them it was about time to return to class so he started packing up his leftovers, “If anything, at least giving us a starting point will be better than blindly searching everywhere.” They nodded. After they were done cleaning up, the four of them gathered their bags and went back down the stairs.

His classes couldn’t fly by fast enough. In an odd occurrence, he was one of the first out of the door only to be followed by Jounouchi, Honda, and Anzu which stunned and amazed nearly everyone who saw them go. At the school gate, Jounouchi waved good-bye. He turned and went in the opposite direction. Honda too left a few minutes later, claiming to go home to take care of somethings before he met up with them at the shop. Yugi nodded in understanding. Together, he and Anzu made their way to the shop. Instead of grandpa greeting them, it was Yami. Yugi blushed as he smiled at them, waving a hand, and looking… well… adorable. Anzu leaned down and asked, “Did you ever talk to him about what was upsetting you?” Yugi flinched, shaking his head. Her lips turned down into a frown and he motioned upstairs where he had a brief exchange with Grandpa before leading Anzu to his room where he sat his bag down and shut the door with a sigh. She took a seat on his bed.

“Okay Yugi Muto, spill it. What’s going on?” He didn’t bother to look up, his eyes staying glued to the floor. “You’ve been avoiding Yami lately.” That got him and he jerked his head up.

“I’m not the one doing the avoiding!” Anzu blinked.

“So… Yami’s the one avoiding you?” Yugi nodded. He moved slowly to the chair at his desk, turning it to face the girl, but he kept his hands clenched just at his knees.

“Ever since… Ever since the Museum incident. He’s been distant, keeping me at arm’s length. It’s like… It’s like he’s afraid that I’m going to be hurt or something and he won’t talk to me about it.” He looked up then, tears stinging the corners of his eyes, “And I’m not sure what it is I need to stop this.” Anzu said nothing. She merely glanced him over before moving slowly, wrapping her arms around his shoulders; Yugi tensed but then relaxed, the tears no longer stopping themselves. He wept into her shoulder. She patted his head with soft murmurs of “It’s going to be okay.” When he was done, he pulled back, wiping at his face. “Sorry Anzu. I know this is ridiculous….”

She shook her head, “It absolutely is not. You have every right to be upset.”  She handed him her handkerchief which he used gratefully to wipe his eyes. “Do you want me to have a word with Yami about it?” He shook his head.

“No, thank you.” He smiled. “I think this is something that Yami and I need to discuss.”

“That we do….” Yugi and Anzu turned. Standing in the doorway was said person, wringing the bottom of his shirt and trying, unsuccessfully to keep a neutral expression. Anzu looked between the two of them. She stood, smoothed her skirt, and headed to the door, patting Yami on the shoulder as she went out. The door closed with a quite click.

Yugi had lived his whole life in that bedroom. He knew every inch of it by heart and he was never bored with it, yet, at that moment, the only thing that seemed to matter was Yami. He seemed to fill the doorway. He found it hard to breathe. Not once in his whole life did he ever feel like this to another person. Sure, he’d had crushes but this was clearly more than that and his heart flip-flopped a bit at the idea. Yugi bit his bottom lip, “Yami….”

“I’m sorry Yugi,” he whispered. Yugi shot out of his chair.

“Yami!” He held up a hand.

“Please, let me finish.” He took a steadying breath as he dropped his hand, “I’m sorry Yugi. I know… I know that I’ve been cold to you recently.” He squeezed his fists together until the knuckles became white, “I… Yugi, I’ve lost everything already. My family… my friends… even my own period in time…. The thought of losing you….” Yugi’s expression shifted. It became soft again and he moved closer, grabbing Yami’s hands gently. The other didn’t look at him. He wasn’t going to escape that easily though and Yugi grabbed his chin, moving him so he had no choice but to look at him.

“Yami, I understand,” he started softly. “I understand all of that but… You don’t have to be afraid of losing me. I promise I’m not going anywhere. Neither are the others. We’re going to find Malik. Everything is going to turn out for the best.”

Yami squeezed his hands, “But if my father hadn’t made the Millennium Items in the first place, none of this would be happening.”

“And then we wouldn’t have met,” he countered. Yami blinked, his mouth going wide. Yugi smiled at him. “We wouldn’t have met and I wouldn’t have made friends with the people I’m friends with today. I’m happy to have met you Yami. I regret nothing.” He raised his hands, kissing the knuckles of the other’s hand which caused both of them to blush. “Don’t regret this ever Yami. It’s no one’s fault and all we can do is keep going until we get to the end.”

_ But the end of what _ Yami wanted to ask but couldn’t as a loud noise outside the door caught their attention. The two turned, raised an eyebrow, before going to investigate. Opening it, they found Anzu and Grandpa aggressively hissing at Jounouchi, who laid on his back in the hallway, to be quiet. Honda stood just behind him dazed. They realized then that the door was open and the two occupants of the room where staring at them which prompted them to make some trash excuse of coming to get them because Jounouchi and Honda had arrived. Honda started to protest but Anzu cut him off, pushing the two of them into the kitchen. Grandpa followed her. Yugi and Yami shared another look. They laughed. Before they walked off though, Yugi held up a hand, “Partners?” Yami’s face softened.

He slapped his hand against the others, “Partners.”

Yugi’s hand seemed to tingle at the contact and that sensation spread to the rest of him, leaving him feel giddy from hairline to toes.

*****

The teams were decided as such: Jounouchi and Yugi, Honda and Yami, and Anzu and Grandpa. The last team agreed to stay behind at the shop in case Malik managed to return or send word that he was alright. The other four went in separate directions, exploring where they could for their missing friend. No one had seen him. A few remembered where they had last seen him. After about three hours, the four of them met up in the middle of Domino City, panting, and looking exhausted. Jounouchi wiped his chin with the back of his hand, “Any luck?”

Honda leaned his head forward once he was able to breath, “Nah man. Nobody’s seen him.”

“It’s like he just vanished into thin air,” Yami confirmed.

“Don’t say that,” Yugi panted, “We’ll find him.” From his pocket, his cellphone began to ring and he opened it, finding a strange number written across, “Hello?”

“Yugi,” Isis greeted. His face paled.

“Isis! How did you…?”

“It’s a long story,” she cut him off, “but the short version is that the Millennium Necklace chose me. It lit up shortly after you and the rest left Egypt.” He blinked.

“So that means….”

“Yes,” she confirmed. “I too am chosen.” She paused. “The Millennium Necklace seems to give me visions of the future, some of the past as well though not as far back as Ancient Egypt.” He nodded. The others moved closer to hear but he held up a hand to them, turning to focus on the conversation.

“Did you get a vision? Is that why you’re calling?”

“Yes, I know that something has happened to my brother. I’ve been trying to get the necklace to give me anything about his situation and I think I’ve finally gotten something.”

“Okay,” he cheered, looking around at the others, “Can you describe what you saw? Maybe we can use it to help find him.”

“That is my deepest wish,” she smiled. A second later, her voice turned… Yugi could only describe it as mystical, “I see my brother standing in a dark warehouse. It is old, abandoned. There is graffiti across the walls, boxes on the floor. Water rests in places on the floor….” Yugi repeated all of this and more to the others and Jounouchi’s face lit up.

“I think I know that place. It sounds like the old warehouse where a lot of the gangs go to settle their disputes.”

“Excellent,” Yugi cheered.

“You can take us there,” Yami asked. Jounouchi nodded.

Turning back to his phone, Yugi told her, “We’ve got it Isis. We know where Malik is.”

“Be careful Yugi,” she warned. “Malik is different.”

“How so?” There was a pause that seemed to stretch forever. “Isis? Hello?”

Slowly, she replied, “Malik has the Millennium Rod. He has been chosen.”


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not apologizing for this chapter's ending. <3

The warehouse was exactly as Isis described it. It was hidden in the shadows of some of the larger buildings surrounding it; paneling was falling off of its side and clearly no one in their right mind had stepped foot into the place in the last decade. At least. Graffiti decorated practically every inch of the thing that there was to cover. A large black bird on the roof cried out before flapping its wings vigorously at the trespassers but it did not take off. Jounouchi held tightly to Honda’s shoulders, swallowing hard, “Man, this place is creepier than I remember it being.”

“Would you stop being a baby,” Honda complained. He tried to shake him off but Jounouchi held on tighter, “Let go!”

“No way man,” he whined, “I gotta stay close. You know. In- in case we get jumped or something.” Honda rolled his eyes.

“Right.”

“You sure this is the place,” Yugi asked. Jounouchi nodded from behind Honda.

“Sure is man. It matches what this Isis friend of yours described. Even down to that really bad graffiti everywhere.”

“Maybe the two of you should wait out here,” Yami offered. “If Malik does have a Millennium item, it could get dangerous.”

“Dangerous,” Honda repeated, “how dangerous are we talking?” Yami stared him straight in the face.

“You could possibly not walk away from this.” Honda gulped.

“Say no more dude. We’ll stay out here and keep an eye for the cops… or gangs… or really aggressive birds.” Yami rolled his eyes. Together, him and Yugi started for the door. It was old and rusty and took the two of them pushing on it to even get it to budge. A loud metallic squeal came from its hinges and once the opening was large enough for them, they stopped, casting the world back into an even eerier silence. The two of them shared a look. Yami went in first.

The inside was completely black. Only the filtering of moonlight from the various broken windows offered any kind of light and he squinted, trying to see into the darkness. A light appeared behind him. Yugi smiled as he held up his cellphone, “This is how I accidentally found your tomb.” Yami was impressed. Together again, they walked forward. Something moved to their right and a quick turn revealed a bird or a rat or something small scuttling out of the way of a falling piece of metal. Yugi sighed in relief.

He wasn’t ready though for when he turned back around and found Malik staring him in the face.

Yugi screamed, falling to the ground. Malik laughed hysterically and jumped back away from the two of them. Yami moved immediately, standing protectively in front of Yugi, “Malik!”

It was easy to see that the person they had friended was different. While his clothing hadn’t changed in style per se, crop top with gold accents, grayish cargo pants, and practical shoes, he had now accented his outfit with a dramatic cape. His eyes were wider but seemingly more… pointed in the corners. His hair stood in all directions. It was also pretty hard to miss the symbol of the Millennium Eye shining on his forehead; the skin around it pulsed as if the darkness was forcing itself through his body.

“If it isn’t the great Guardian,” he taunted, his voice oddly deeper, almost like it wasn’t his own. Yugi staggered to his feet. Yami made sure to keep his arm up and hold his partner back. Malik sneered at them. “How precious. It seems the two of you finally made up.”

“What in the world is going on Malik,” Yugi shouted. He laughed and from under his cloak, he pulled out a long, golden rod. There was no mistaking the symbol on the end. “That’s the Millennium Rod!”

“How brilliant the Guardian’s puppet seems to be,” he snickered. Yami gritted his teeth as he pointed it at the two of them. “We are going to have a shadow game. I will have that puzzle. I will get my revenge on the Guardian for ruining my life!” Yami’s face paled. Yugi looked between the two of them before quickly catching his partner’s hand, squeezing. Yami looked at it. He swallowed hard, coming back to himself.

“If that’s how we’re going to save you,” he countered, his own Millennium Eye appeared on his forehead, “Then that’s what we’ll do!” Malik laughed. It wasn’t the warm, inviting laugh that Yugi had come to known in the last couple of months; it was cold, almost demonic. The shadows shifted around them. It pooled around their feet until large, grotesque forms rose out of the inky darkness. Yugi clung tight to Yami. He raised his hands, “Appear Dark Magician!” There was a blinding light like the last time they fought in a shadow and from it appeared the familiar form of the magician. He bowed his head to his master briefly. Yami pointed to Malik, “Our goal is that rod and our friend!”

“You can try if you want,” Malik taunted. He pointed the rod towards the two of them and the shadows lunged.

“Shield,” Yami ordered. The Dark Magician raised his staff and a greenish shield appeared around the three of them. The first couple of monsters hit it and disappeared. However, one finally put a crack in it, causing both master and monster to grunt, trying to hold them back. When it shattered, they flew back a bit. Yami straightened quickly, “Quick! Dark Magic attack!” The Dark Magician raised his hand. The world seemed to grow cold for an instant and Yugi thought his mind was going to be ripped from his body. It wasn’t though. The monsters that were hit, shattered. Another wave was ready. One lunged straight for the Dark Magician but he knocked it away his staff. They came one after the other; there seemed to be no end in sight. A couple even managed to get past him, heading straight for the two of them. Before Yami could move, Yugi stood in front of him, raising the puzzle around his neck. It lit up, just like it had the night of their battle at the Museum, and just like that time, the monsters disappeared. Yami nodded to him gratefully, “Thanks partner.”

“Any time,” he returned, smiling. Yami grabbed his shirt collar and pulled him out of the way of another monster. When he stopped staggering, he raised the puzzle and got rid of it too. The fighting kept going back and forth without either side gaining ground it seemed; it was clear by the way they all panted that this wasn’t going to be able to keep happening for much longer.

Suddenly, a metal plate from the side of the building came flying in, taking out three monsters at once. They turned. Standing in the doorway were two shadows. Yugi’s face lit up, “Honda! Jounouchi!”

“You two were taking too long,” Honda noted, swinging down on a monster’s head. The monster shattered. Jounouchi dodged a swing, punching up on another’s chin, making it disappear as well.

“Figured you could use a hand,” Jounouchi smirked in their direction. Yami nodded.

“The help is greatly appreciated.” He nodded and turned, spotting Malik.

“Woah! What happened to him?”

“Long story,” Yugi returned. Malik growled, raising the rod.

“Well, well. It seems you two weren’t foolish enough to come on your own after all.” He tisked. The rod started glowed. The five of them were forced to raise their hands to try and protect their eyes. Yugi vaguely heard from him, “We’ll finish this another day Guardian when your pets can’t rush to your rescue!”

The place fell silent.

Slowly, they opened their eyes. No more were there unnatural shadows. No more light. Worst of all, no Malik. Jounouchi grunted, “That coward! He ran away.”

“Nothing we can do about it now man,” Honda stated. Yami nodded but then collapsed to a knee. Yugi rushed to him.

Weakly he looked up, smiling softly, “I’m alright. Just tired.” Yami looked up at the Dark Magician who bowed to him again before disappearing. Yugi grabbed a hand, trying to help him up.

“We all are. At least we know Malik’s alive now.”

“Possessed but yes, he is.” The two of them staggered but two sets of hands caught them: Jounouchi on Yugi, Honda on Yami. Yami looked seriously at the three of them, “The Millennium Items can pull the darkness out of a person’s heart and it seems that Malik has a lot of it…” Pause, “with me.” Jounouchi scratched his head.

“But you just woke up like a month ago right? What beef could he have with you?”

He shook his head, “I have no idea. Maybe the next time we find him, we can ask.”

“Right,” Honda jeered, “because that’s going to absolutely work. Let’s ask the clearly psychotic man why he hates your guts.”

“Why not? It works in the movies,” Jounouchi pointed out. Honda shook his head as the two of them lead the way out of the building. Yugi didn’t take his eyes off Yami until they were outside. He stood straighter, stretching a bit. Their journey home was quiet except for the quips that continued between the two leading the way. Yugi’s eyes dropped a bit and he wondered if taking a nap in the streets was a good idea. Yami petted his head which woke him back up.

The four went their separate ways with promises of looking again the following day. Yugi and Yami walked in silence. When they finally arrived back, the shop was dark. He rubbed his eyes, “Grandpa must have gotten tired.”

Yami looked at the clock, “It is pretty late.”

“I’ll send Anzu a text real quick to tell her we made it back,” Yugi stated absently, “and we’ll tell her about it tomorrow.” Yami nodded. There was a moment of silence between the two of them which seemed to stretch into eternity. Yami moved first.

“I’ll go shower first,” he said, moving towards the stairs. “Good night Yugi.”

Yugi, fighting back the blush he had at the thought of Yami in the shower, managed to choke out a, “Good night Yami.” The other disappeared upstairs. Yugi deflated a bit and he turned, going to lock the door. Once done, he headed towards the stairs but an envelope on the counter, his name written in large, elegant script, caught his eye and he stopped, opening it. His eyes scanned the contents.

His face paled.

Without telling Yami where he was going, Yugi sprinted to the door, dropping the letter, without meaning to, in the process. The door chimed as he flung it open. He didn’t hesitate to sprint off into the night, sending up a silent prayer to whatever god could hear him.

Grandpa and Anzu were in danger!


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, yeah, so heads up with the end of this chapter. This might be a bit of a spoiler but something happens with the Millennium Eye but I don't do graphic details so I only imply what happens to it but if that still makes you uncomfortable, you might want to skip a bit of the end of this chapter.

There were a million reasons Yugi knew that this was a bad idea: the first being that him and possibly the two captured people inside were not going to come out of this in one piece. The other, and probably more important one, was that he could potentially lose the Millennium Puzzle and disappoint Yami who was relying on him. Speaking of said person… maybe he should have told him. He had been in such a rush upon reading the note that he had completely forgotten about his partner; he knew he owed him the biggest apology in the world after this was over considering what they had promised. He looked the building up and down.

He quickly recalled the letter, “ _Greetings Yugi-boy, I know this is a bit archaic but I am afraid that there is no other choice considering how rudely you and your friends evaded my men the other day. I wish to speak to you about the possession you are currently wearing around your neck. To ensure this occurs, I have acquired both your grandfather and your female friend. If you wish to see them again, meet me at Warehouse XX on XX docks at XX:XX PM. Don’t keep me waiting. I look forward to our meeting._ ”

The audacity! Whoever this person was, was dangerous. He knew this and yet, there was no time to turn around and get support. He could only hope that Yami saw where he had accidentally dropped the letter and came as quickly as he could. Yugi swallowed. While this place was clearly nicer than the last one they’d been at, it still unnerved him. He slid the door open.

The lights were on in this place. Yugi found himself standing in a warehouse that was clearly still in use, crates lined nearly ever wall and there was a fork lift which was undoubtedly used to move said items around. A light flickered overhead.

Someone cleared their throat. His eyes landed on a tall man in red; he had long white hair that covered one of his eyes and in one hand, he gently swirled a glass with what looked like red wine in it. The man opened his eyes. Yugi tensed.

“You! You were at that illegal dig in Egypt!” He blinked, then smirked, probably recognizing who he was as well.

“Greetings Yugi-boy,” he started, “I’m glad to see you accepted my invitation.”

“You didn’t give me much of a choice,” he snapped, “Where are Grandpa and Anzu?” The man snickered.

“How serious!” He snapped his fingers of his free hand and a light appeared on the catwalk above them. Grandpa and Anzu appeared in his vision. The older man was slumped against the her, his hands and legs bound, tape over his mouth much like hers were. She tried to scream something but couldn’t. Yugi took a step forward.

“Anzu! Grandpa!” He turned back to the man in red. “Let them go! They have nothing to do with this. This is between me and you.” He chuckled.

“Afraid I can’t Yugi-boy.” He sat his glass down. “You see, you have something very important that I want.” He looked down at the puzzle but Yugi grabbed the rope that held it, yanking it back out of sight as he twisted his body to cover it a bit.

“No deal!” The man froze. A laugh tore out from his body and Yugi was… stunned for a second. When he regained control of himself, the man turned apparently serious.

“You don’t seem to understand the predicament you’re in. I wasn’t asking.”

“And I’m still telling you no,” he growled, “If you want it, you’ll have to battle me for it!” The man stopped.

“So it is true. You do know about the shadow games.” Yugi fidgeted.

“I’ve… I’ve seen them.” He laughed again.

“You’ve seen them! You’ve probably never fully participated in one. Oh wait. I _know_ you haven’t.” Yugi flinched.

“How would you know?” He smirked and lifted the hair that covered half of his face. Yugi gasped. Instead of a normal eye, there sat the Millennium Eye, clearly embedded in its place.

“You could say I see all now,” he jeered. Dropping the hair, he continued with, “I am Pegasus J. Crawford, chosen of the Millennium Eye.” He held up three fingers. “Do you know Yugi-boy that there are three ways for a Millennium item to transfer owners? The first is obvious: the owner has to die. Now I,” he noted as Yugi’s face paled, “am not a fan of this one. It’s too risky and besides, it’s not guaranteed that the item will even choose the killer as the next owner. It could easily go to anyone it finds to be more worthy.” He sat his glass down on the edge of the chair he was sitting on, standing, “The second is that the owner simply passes on the item. I can see though,” he mused, stalking closer, “That you are foolish enough to not allow that to happen so that leaves us with only the third option….”

“A shadow game,” Yugi finished. Pegasus smiled and clapped his hands.

“My, my! You are as brilliant as my men said you were.” Yugi took a step back. Pegasus continued to smile twistedly at him. The air started to swirl. It moved around him aggressively, raising his hair to expose the glowing light of the Millennium Eye, “So it is a shadow game will have! Our items and lives are the things on the line. Come my Relinquish! Bring to me victory!”

Yugi grunted, covering his face behind his arm. When he looked back up, he found himself staring into the face of a creature with a large hole in its belly, two bulking arms, and a face with one eye that looked exactly like the Millennium Eye. It floated down in front of its master. Pegasus smirked. “Isn’t it brilliant? Meet Relinquish! My shadow monster.” He pointed. “And the one who will win me that puzzle. Go!”

He barely had time to dodge. Relinquish let out a roar, immediately rushing forward, raising one of its massive claws. Yugi ducked and rolled. The monster brought it down into air. When he was back on his feet, Yugi sprinted towards some of the crates. His first attempt was to get to higher ground. Relinquish made quick work of that idea. He swiped the box underneath Yugi's feet, sending him tumbling to the ground below. Yugi landed with a grunt before scrambling out of the way of another attack. Pegasus, undisturbed by all of this, returned to his seat, taking a sip of his wine, “Come now Yugi. Show me how powerful the chosen of the Puzzle can really be!”

 _Easier said than done_ he thought. Yugi ran further back into the warehouse, towards Anzu and Grandpa; he found a dark corner to hide in to at least catch his breath. Relinquish wasn’t far behind. He covered his mouth with a hand and squeezed the puzzle with the other. If only Yami was here….

He knew that the puzzle had power, he’d used it before after all when they fought in the Museum and against Malik. Yet, here, it sat without showing any kind of sign for reacting. _Why? Why did you choose me? I’ve got no power; I can’t even protect my friends when they need me the most! Why?_

The puzzle didn’t respond. Not that he expected it to but some kind of answer would have been nice. He squeezed the edge again until his knuckles were white. He only let go when he cut his hand, a trickle of blood oozing from the spot. He watched it for a second. What in the world was he doing? Was he just going to sit here and wallow in self-pity while his best friend and Grandpa ran the risk of death? He looked up. Anzu was staring wide-eyed at him. She was screaming something. Fear ran through him and he turned sharply, moving in just enough time to not be killed by Relinquishes’ claws. Pegasus sipped his wine again.

“Come now Yugi-boy. Why don’t you just give me the puzzle? You could wipe your hands of this whole affair.” Another sip.

“Never Pegasus,” Yugi snapped. The older man shook his head.

“Such a foolish boy.” Sip. “Oh, and one thing Yugi-boy. Relinquish has a special ability. You see,” he motioned to the monster. Yugi noticed that across its whole disgusting body, slits appeared and under them, were… eyes. He jerked back in disgust. “Once its eyes have opened, everything within this warehouse is going to be destroyed. Isn’t that exciting?”

He paled, “You’re twisted Pegasus!” He laughed.

“I take that as the highest compliment.” Yugi dodged another swipe. Suddenly, the sound of running footsteps caught his attention and he looked up. A couple of grunts followed this along with the sounds of people hitting the metal below them; both of the battlers looked up to where the captives were, convinced that they had somehow escaped. That wasn’t the case. In fact, a new person was there and he gripped the railing tightly after untying the two of them.

“Yugi,” Yami shouted, “I’ve got your grandpa and Anzu!” He raised a fist. “You can do this partner! I believe in you!” Yugi blinked. The world seemed to slow until it was just the two of them. A smile crept to his face. He raised his fist back.

If only time would stop.

But it didn’t and the moment was quickly ruined by Relinquish who roared and swiped down at Yugi who barely managed to dodge. Yami shouted, “Be careful Yugi! I’ll come back once I get them to safety.” He nodded. The guardian disappeared out the way he had come in, carrying Grandpa on his back as Anzu followed. She paused long enough to look back. Yugi shot her a quick, reassuring glance. He turned then, glaring down both Relinquish and his master who still seemed unfazed by the whole scene.

“How touching,” he cooed. “But I’m afraid it’s not going to do you any good.” Relinquishes’ eyes opened a little further. Yugi gritted his teeth.

“I’m not going to let you hurt anyone else again,” he vowed. The puzzle suddenly started to glow. On his forehead appeared the symbol of the Millennium Items and Pegasus jerked, finally shocked by something. “I’m going to stop you here and now Pegasus! Get ready!” Yugi raised a hand, “Come forth my shadow monster, Gandora the Dragon of Destruction!”

There was a blinding light. Now Pegasus was the one who had to shield his eyes. Relinquish as well. When it was done, he turned with a growl at his lips but it stopped short. Gandora was huge. It easily had a wing span that went from catwalk to catwalk; its body was black in color but all over, it had red, eye-like orbs that glowed in the suddenly dim lighting. It roared. Relinquish physically quivered and shrunk back. Pegasus was at a loss for words as he slammed his glass down onto his chair, standing. The glass shattered. Red liquid spilled over the chair's arm, staining the ground below it a dark red. He gritted his teeth.

"You finally summoned a shadow monster!" Pegasus pointed towards him. A twisted, crazed look came over his eyes as he screeched, "It's too little, too late! Relinquish, finish him!"

Yugi pointed forward, “Gandora, Final Destruction!” Gandora roared and ducked its head. The orbs over its whole body lit up in a brilliant shade of blood red.

The following explosion rocked the foundations of every warehouse along the docks.

Yami and Anzu turned their heads. They were at the edge of the docks, right where the city began again, underneath a lone light. Grandpa was between them with one arm over each of their shoulders as they carried him down the docks, groaning, and barely conscious. He removed the old man’s arm carefully, numbly starting back for the warehouse, “Y-Yugi.” Anzu huffed. They gently propped him against the light pole before she turned to speak.

“Go check on him Yami,” she ordered. “I’ve got Grandpa! Just go!”

Yami looked back briefly. Then he was running. It felt like the world was spinning too fast, like he couldn’t run fast enough. He remembered training with Heba, running in the sands of Egypt. He remembered how it had made him stronger and faster. Now, it was useless. All that training for nothing.

It was practically a miracle that the warehouse walls were even standing; to the outside observer, it looked like almost nothing had happened… until one looked up and noticed that the whole roof had disappeared without so much as a piece of material left to prove it had ever been there. Yami carefully reached for the door. It was warm but not unpleasantly so. Proof that there had been fire. He yanked on the door. It slid but with some trouble. He found the inside melted a bit. He looked around. Yugi stood in the middle of the room, his back to Yami who felt relief wash over him, “Yugi!” The boy jerked a bit before he turned. His eyes were dull for a second but they lit up, smiling at him.

“Yami,” he breathed. Yami rushed forward, catching him in a tight hug. It took a moment for Yugi to respond to the gesture but he did, burying his face in his neck. Yami looked around. Everything was gone; the catwalk had collapsed and he didn’t want to think of the fate of the two men he had knocked out to save Grandpa and Anzu. Yugi pulled back a bit.

“I did it,” he said softly, “I won Yami.” The other blinked before petting him on the head.

“You did it,” he confirmed. From behind them, Pegasus groaned. They could see him under some rubble but he otherwise looked alright.

They couldn’t see the half of his face where the eye had been but they imagined it wasn’t pretty considering they found the Eye sitting several feet away from him.

Yami released Yugi. He climbed over the rubble until he got it, bringing it back to Yugi who only shook his head, “You take it. I’m giving it to you.”

“Are you sure,” he asked. Yugi nodded, shivering.

“I’ve already got enough bad memories because of it. No thanks.” Yami smiled softly.

“Alright. I accept.” The symbol appeared on his forehead and the eye glowed softly, acknowledging the exchange. He nodded once it was done.

From the doorway, several people, dressed in full military tactical gear, rushed into the warehouse. Yami immediately stepped in front of Yugi, convinced that they were about to face something else. That was, until two familiar faces appeared. Isis smiled at the two of them. She approached them followed by Rishid and their shoulders slumped.

“Isis,” Yugi greeted. “Rishid. What are you two doing here?”

“We are here to act as your back up,” Rishid noted. He raised his hand which clutched the Millennium Key. Isis nodded, the necklace clearly around her neck.

“Yes, but it seems we arrived a bit late,” she mused. She motioned the men forward and they set to work immediately, getting Pegasus and his two hired hands (who thankfully had fallen but were not killed) onto stretches and out to several waiting helicopters. Yami eyed her.

“I’m assuming the necklace told you where to find us?”

She nodded, “It did. I did not know how this would end but I am glad to see it ended alright.” They watched as the men were rolled out. “We will handle Mr. Crawford. He has been on our wanted list for a while now because of illegal digging but we have been unable to get our hands on him… until tonight.” She smiled at the two of them. “You did well. Both of you.” Yami shook his head.

“This was all Yugi,” he beamed. The other smiled softly.

Isis bowed her head a bit, “Then the puzzle chose well after all.” She turned. “We have already collected your friend and grandfather; both are being transported to the hospital to check for injuries. We should get you there as well.” Yugi tilted his head, dazed.

“I’m alright….” Isis smiled.

Looking at Yami, she said, “You might want to catch him.”

“Catch me…?” The world spun suddenly. Yugi pitched forward, his eyes rolling back into his head, and Yami thrusted out his arm, doing just as Isis told him to before the boy could hit the ground. She continued to the door.

“Let us get him to the hospital,” she soothed. Yami nodded, starting to pick him up until Rishid stepped in. He cradled the unconscious boy to his chest as the three of them made their way out to yet another waiting helicopter.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Have some softness in this chapter!

Yami ran a finger over Yugi’s hand. He slept peacefully in the hospital bed, his breathing even and constant which was confirmed by the heart monitor the nurses had connected to him, to be safe they had explained to him. Yami wasn’t sure how he felt about a modern hospital. On one hand, he could easily see the benefits of how it aided the sick. Yet, the smell reminded him too much of the embalmers’ work places. It was a smell he associated with death.

The door slid open softly. Isis walked in, her hands folded in front of her. He nodded to her and she bowed her head to him, “You have nothing to fear Guardian. The nurses confirmed that he is just exhausted.” He reached up, brushing some bangs out of his sleeping partner’s face.

“He managed to summon a rather powerful monster,” he mused, “for one so small.” She smiled.

“The Puzzle chose an excellent master.” He nodded in agreement. They fell silent for a few moments until she sat across from him, “Guardian, have you received any more of your memories?” He paused.

“When Yugi gave me the eye,” he admitted, “I got something a little more. I remembered more of the journey to the tomb. I was travelling with my mentor and one of the sacred guardians. I remember….” His eyes seemed to glaze over. “They told me the darkness had a name. They called it “Zorc” and said it was born from the evil of humans.” She nodded.

“That’s good. Is there anything else?” He shook his head.

“I’m afraid not.” They fell silent again. Isis reached up absently and touched the necklace around her neck.

“The Millennium Necklace shows me possible futures and very little of the pass; I’m afraid I am unable to see as far back as your era in time.” He frowned.

“How were you selected?”

“Shortly after your departure,” she recounted, “we decided to move the items to a more secure location since we feared that they too would be stolen like the ones we had sent to Japan. I was supervising with the help of Rishid and the Hopkins when the necklace lit up under my gaze. Of course I had no choice but wear it.” She paused. “That was when I got the first vision; the battle you all experienced in the Museum. Rishid was next. The key lit up at the same time as the necklace and we both knew.” Yami nodded.

“What of the scales?”

“Unclaimed,” she explained, “but we brought them along just to be safe. Dr. Hopkins and Rebecca agreed to stay in Egypt, studying your tomb. There were some inscriptions on the walls but we were unable to decipher them by the traditional means; there seems to be a mixing of languages happening and it is taking longer than normal. We hope that that means someone wrote something of use for us.”

“I wish I could tell you what it means,” he stated. Softer, he said, “I’m sorry.”

“For what?” He motioned to the air in general.

“For all of this. For putting your lives at risk.” She smiled softly.

“Guardian, our lives were at risk the moment Yugi touched the entrance to your tomb.” He flinched.

“Fate has a cruel sense of humor.”

“That it does.” She stood. “No one is to blame Guardian. We can point fingers all day but that will do is distract us from our greater purpose.” He hummed. They fell silent for a few minutes until the Millennium Necklace lit up. Her smile grew wider. Turning, she started to leave, “Your partner will waking in a few seconds. I will leave you be for the night. Please inform him that his grandfather is alright as well; just resting.” Yami nodded and thanked her as she left out the door. Yugi stirred.

He shifted a bit so that they were more facing each other. “Yugi,” he breathed. He looked around, dazed and confused.

“Yami, where am I?”

He brushed a hand over his forehead, “The hospital. You collapsed after your first shadow game. Do you remember anything?” He paused for a second before nodding weakly. Suddenly, his eyes flew wide and he started to sit up.

“Grandpa! Anzu! What happened to them?” Yami smiled, gently pushing his shoulder back against the pillows again.

“Both of them are just fine,” he confirmed. “Grandpa is sleeping in another room thanks to the Ishtars. Anzu checked out fine. Rishid escorted her home, just to be safe.” He smiled.

“Good. I’m glad they’re alright.” Silence once more. Yugi shifted, reaching out for Yami’s hand. “Yami?” He took it, running his thumb over his knuckles. “I’m sorry.” Yami tilted his head.

“For?”

“Not telling you,” he confirmed. “I was so worried about Grandpa and Anzu, I just took off without thinking of telling you.” His face fell, “And right after we had promised to not do that anymore. I’m sorry.” Yami’s eyes softened.

“It’s alright Yugi. It turned out alright in the end.”

“It doesn’t make it alright,” he whispered. Yugi shifted a bit so that he could look at the other closely. His eyes were a deep red in the darkness. “Ever since I’ve met you, I’ve made so many good friends. Before, I didn’t care for much. I was lonely and alone. It was… hard.” He breathed. “But now I have so much to fight for and I can’t promise I won’t do it again. I’ll do whatever it takes to protect everyone… including you.”

Yami chuckled before reaching up to brush his bangs out of his face again, “Don’t overdo it then. We would be nothing without you.” He paused but beamed at him. “I’m proud the puzzle chose you Yugi; I’m proud to call you my partner.”

His face grew hot. He pulled his hand out of Yami’s and looked away, quickly stating, “I’m still tired! Guess I’ll go back to sleep for a few hours before we head home.” He rolled over. “You should get some sleep too. Night Yami.”

Silence. Yugi could hear his own breathing as he buried his face into the pillow, hoping that maybe it would smother him and all his awkwardness. There was no sound of the chair moving but he heard Yami whisper, “Good night Yugi.” He squeezed his eyes shut.

There was no denying it. Yugi was head over god-damned heels in love with the person currently sitting beside him.

He curled a bit tighter. He just didn’t know what that meant for the situation they were in and he hoped, that whatever it was, wouldn’t come back to lash him violently in the face.


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I... this chapter and the next one are wrecks.

“Oh man. We really missed everything last night,” Honda whined. Anzu and Yugi nodded as the four of them continued on their way to class. The morning had come with no indication that anything had occurred; the only thing close enough was a report about a mysterious fire at the docks that investigators couldn’t explain.

Anzu smiled, “Thankfully my parents were out of town this week for a business meeting so there wasn’t any need to explain why I was coming home so late. Rishid was also kind enough to stay as a guard.” Yugi nodded.

“That was nice of him,” Yugi said, “Oh, Grandpa’s alright too. A bit bruised and tired but nothing too bad. They were afraid with his heart the way it is, that he had a heart attack but everything checked out. They still recommended bed rest though.”

Jounouchi nodded, “Glad to hear it Yug. What’s Yami doing today anyway?”

“Staying by Grandpa,” he confirmed, “And still searching. So far, we’ve got five items accounted for- six if you consider we know that Malik has the rod.” Anzu leaned forward a bit.

“How many items are there anyway?”

“Seven,” Yugi replied. “We’re only missing the Millennium Ring. It’s not shown up at all since it went missing.”

“You don’t think that white haired freak could have it?”

“Pegasus?” Yugi shook his head. “We checked him. He only had the Eye.” Jounouchi touched his chin.

“That’s odd. I’m still hearing the rumors about a white haired guy running around making people disappear.” Yugi blanched.

“Wait! That’s still going on?” Jounouchi nodded.

“According to the gang it is.” Yugi’s brow furrowed. Now it was his turn to get the wheels turning.

“It’s a possibility….” He paused. “What if… What if Malik got the Millennium Rod from this guy?”

“How would that have happened,” Honda asked, scratching his head.

“Well, think about,” Yugi started, “we know the items were all stolen on the same night right? Pegasus must have sent someone to get them at first but what if this white haired guy struck the same night? That would explain why Pegasus only had the Millennium Eye.”

“Then that means that that guy walked away with the other two,” Anzu added. Yugi nodded.

“Right and if Malik ran into him, it’s possible the rod chose him which would explain how he ended up with it.” He paused. “I don’t think stealing the items meets the requirements Pegasus told me about last night….”

“That’s good and all but it doesn’t explain why he went off the deep end,” Jounouchi stated. Yugi frowned.

“I know but right now, that’s more information that we had a few days ago.”

“I’m sure Yami will find something,” Anzu assured them, “for now, let’s hurry. We’re going to be late.” The four of them started running to the gate and up to their classroom, making it just before the teacher walked in. They slid into their spots with a sigh. A couple of people teased that maybe Jounouchi and Honda were starting to rub off on the two of them. The door slid open. Everyone moved to their seats while their teacher went to the podium, motioning to the door.

“Everyone,” he started, “today I would like to introduce you to your new classmate.” Murmurs rose from amongst them. The teacher motioned again to the door. A boy about a head taller than Yugi walked in; he had shockingly long white hair and possibly a face that could rival Yugi’s in looking innocent. He joined the teacher at the front of the room. “Go ahead and introduce yourself.”

He bowed, “Hello, I’m Ryou Bakura. It’s a pleasure to meet you all.” A couple of people whispered. Was that… a British accent? He didn’t seem to notice and continued with, “I hope to be good friends with you all. Please just call me Bakura!” The teacher patted his shoulder assuringly.

“That’s perfectly fine.” He looked around. “Why don’t you sit next to Yugi? Yugi?” He stood. “Help him out okay?”

“Yes sir,” he chirped. Bakura smiled at him and walked to the seat. Once settled, he turned, holding out a hand.

“Hello! I’m Bakura.” Yugi took it.

“Yugi.” They released hands.

When they got the time, Yugi found Bakura to be a very easy to be around. He was not only polite but thoughtful. The girls took to him almost instantly (much to the disgruntlement of all the boys in the class). Honda and Jounouchi pouted. Anzu patted them on the shoulder and assured them that none of the girls thought about them that way anyway so they had nothing to worry about. She covered her ears but laughed at their immediate responses. Yugi chuckled. Bakura, once broken free of a string of girls, stopped in front of him with a sigh. “You alright there Bakura?”

“I will be as soon as I get my breath back,” he laughed. He straightened. “So what now?”

“Now is lunch time,” Jounouchi cheered. “Why don’t you come eat with us?” Bakura blinked.

“Are you sure?”

“Of course,” Anzu added. “It’s your first day here. Where else are you going to go?” He paused.

“… Good point.” The five of them made their way upstairs. The lunch period turned out to be the best time to learn about him so they asked him about everything: where was he from? What did his family do? Why had he moved to Domino City? He laughed once the bombardment was done and explained that he had come from Britain; his mother was Japanese and his father British. After her death, he had lived his life there. His father was also an archeologist (a coincidence that wasn’t missed by Yugi) who had worked in Egypt for a while. However, due to his declining health, he had to be moved to a specialty hospital here in Domino. Anzu touched his hand gently.

“It sounds like you’ve had it rough.” Bakura smiled.

“I’m alright. He’s alright right now and with the medical help here, I’m sure he’ll be just fine.” She nodded.

“Still, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask any of us.” He nodded.

“Thank you.”

“Say Bakura, since you don’t know the area that well and everything, how about we have a welcome to Domino party for you?” Everyone stared at her. Anzu smiled, flashing the victory sign. “How about we go to the arcade tonight?” Their faces lit up.

“That sounds like a good idea!”

“I’m down.”

“Sure thing. I’ll have to call Grandpa after school though.” They faced Bakura. He smiled.

“I don’t have to be to the hospital until later. Why not?” They cheered. While the four of them turned to finalize their plans, he smirked.

*****

The day stayed sunny. This pleased Anzu greatly, knowing that her plans weren’t going to be ruined with rain. Bakura was packing his bag when the four of them walked up, smiling at him. He returned the expression. Together, they walked out of the building, talking animated as they showed him through town. Bakura looked excited. They stopped by Burger World for a quick, early dinner, before they set off for the arcade. Yugi walked beside Bakura.

“You said your dad is an archeologist,” he asked. Bakura nodded.

“One of the best. He did a lot of digs for the British Museum. Mostly in Egypt.” He raised an eyebrow.

“That’s where my grandfather did his work too. I mean, he went all over but he liked Egypt the most.”

“Oh really,” Bakura asked, “It must be a small world after all.”

“That it is,” he beamed. Bakura returned the expression and Anzu called out to them, waving a hand. Yugi waved back, running to catch up to her. As he did, something changed. The Millennium Puzzle began to glow.

Bakura leaned forward, “Uh… Yugi? Is that thing around your neck supposed to be glowing like that?” Yugi’s eyes immediately went to it. The others turned, looking as well. Yugi’s face snapped up.

 “One of the items is nearby,” he told them. Their expressions grew serious. They nodded to each other before Jounouchi, Honda, and Yugi took off. Anzu rooted through her bag for her cellphone.

“Sorry Bakura,” she apologized, finding it. “Looks like we’re not going to the arcade today. We’ll explain tomorrow alright?” She took off, dialing on the phone, and he raised a hand to stop her. When she was gone, he turned, snickering.

“Of course that fool shows up.” He kicked a rock, breaking a nearby car window. “No matter. Once Yugi and the Guardian defeat him, all it will take is for me to defeat them to have all of the items.” He softened again. “I’ll just need to play the part a little longer is all.”

*****

The four of them raced through the darkening streets; the light from the puzzle served as their guide, growing brighter when they got closer to the place where the other Millennium item was. They were panting when they finally stopped. They were standing in a park. It was dark except for a couple of street lamps. There was a fountain in the center but it was off; the wind rustled the trees and bushes around them. The puzzle was at its brightest. Yugi looked at his friends, “Whichever one it is, it’s here.”

“Great but where,” Jounouchi asked.

“Why don’t you try asking it,” Honda snickered. “Hello? Anyone out there? Calling all psychopaths!”

“Would you not,” Anzu snapped, “Refer to the people that could kill us in a heartbeat as psychopaths.”

“That’s exactly why I’m calling them that!”

“And why do you think they’re going to attack us faster? It’s because you’re taunting them!”

“Uh guys….” Honda and Anzu looked at Yugi who was wide-eyed. “I don’t think now’s the time to keep arguing. We’ve got a problem.” They looked around. Coming out of the shadows were a several people, all dressed the same way in long, dark hooded cloaks, the Millennium Eye glowing on their heads. They jerked though as if they had no control over their limbs. Jounouchi and Yugi backed up. Honda immediately raised his arm in front of Anzu.

“Oh man. What’s going on?”

“How would we know man,” Jounouchi returned. One of the men suddenly groaned, shooting forward with a raised hand, a pipe revealed from under his cloak. Jounouchi met him. He dodged the pipe by ducking down; when he came back up, he grabbed him at the collar and the front of his pants, sending him flying over his head. He hit a tree and slumped to the ground. Honda met another with a fist from the side. Jounouchi raised a thumb. He looked back over his shoulder at the other two, “Look around and see if you can find this guy. If it’s Malik, try to punch him in the face for me!” They nodded. Yugi took Anzu’s hand and pulled her out of the way. He cracked his knuckles. “You ready for this pal?”

“Always,” Honda smirked, tossing him the pipe his victim had thrown. They ran forward. So did the zombies. They groaned and grunted, coming forth with pipes and knives and all sorts of mismatched weaponry. They ducked when they could, tossed them, hit them in the back just hard enough to knock them out, before they moved on to the next zombified person. In total, about fifteen people went down. They were bruised and battered but both came out in relatively one piece. They panted. Raising a hand, they high fived.

“Good job,” Jounouchi breathed out.

“Same to you,” he returned. “Where did Yugi and Anzu go?” He looked around.

“They went to see if they could find the guy controlling everyone….”

“We’re here,” Anzu answered. The two of them emerged from the tree line, covered in a few sticks and leaves which they dusted off of themselves. “We couldn’t find him.”

“The puzzle stopped glowing a few minutes ago,” Yugi clarified. “But we kept looking just to be safe.” Jounouchi nodded.

“Good try you guys. At least everyone is coming out of this alright.” They nodded. Anzu looked down at her phone. There were several missed phone calls from the same number on it. She scratched her cheek.

“Oops.” The boys stared at her she dialed the number back, putting the phone to her ear. It took a few moments for the phones to connect, “Hey Yami….” She pulled the phone away from her ear and once he stopped shouting, she put it back, “I’m sorry. We were in a bit of a situation. I sent you a message about it.” Pause. “Oh. No one’s taught you to read text messages yet. Great. I’ll do that when we meet up. Just… Look, just wait there. We’re on the way back. Bye-bye!” She hung up the phone with a sigh, holding it up for them to see. “I called Yami to tell him what was happening and he was on the way to meet us but got lost.”

“We better go meet up with him then,” Honda replied. “He’s probably worried sick.”

“Probably,” Jounouchi teased, elbowing Yugi in the side, “Right Yugi?” Yugi blushed but nodded his head. The group returned the way they had come; the night had fallen completely and the street was lit up by the lamps and businesses around. They hadn’t emptied though. People, now ready for the weekend night, were out and ready to party. Yugi looked around. It wasn’t hard to miss the sprinting form of Yami. He was wearing jeans this time, a long turtleneck and a vest jacket Yugi forgot he owned. Jounouchi waved to him. He ran up to the group, staring at all of them.

“Are you all alright,” he asked. The four of them smiled at him and gave him a victory sign. His shoulders slumped. “Don’t scare me like that again.”

“Sorry Yami,” Anzu replied. “I forgot to turn my ringer back on after school.”

“Hey, don’t beat yourself up too badly,” Jounouchi told her.

“That’s right,” Honda added, “Who knows what could have happened if your phone had gone off?”

“Not that it matters much now,” Yugi reminded them, “whoever it was, Malik or that other guy, was gone not long after.”

“We’ll need to be more careful then,” Yami confirmed. The four of them nodded but his eyes locked on Yugi, who flushed a bit under the expression. The other three shared a look. Suddenly, Jounouchi and Honda patted Yugi roughly on the back which tripped him into Yami’s hands. He caught him. They walked by.

“Well, I don’t know about you all but I’m tired,” Honda yawned. It was loud, over the top, and clearly faked. Jounouchi matched him.

“Yep. All that fighting really knocked it out of me. I’m going home to sleep.”

“Mom and Dad are coming home soon,” Anzu sung a bit, “I need to be there or get in trouble.” She winked at Yugi. “But hey, sorry we have to change our plans Yugi.” She clapped her hands. “I know! Why don’t the two of you go out and have fun for us?”

“But….”

“Have fun,” they sang to them. Before either of them could say anything, the three of them took off. Yugi was raging red. He promised himself to have a sharp word, or three, with them tomorrow. He face palmed. Yami tapped his shoulder and he jerked.

“What was that,” he asked. Yugi shook his head.

“Your guess is as good as mine.” He paused. The red on his face grew a bit more; he covered it as best as he could with the back of his hands. “Do you… do you want to head to the arcade with me Yami?” He leaned his head to the side.

“What is an arcade?”

He smiled, “A place that has a lot of things like those games you like at home.” He held out his hand. “You want to go?” Yami looked at his hand for a second before nodding, taking, and allowing Yugi to drag him down the sidewalk and to this arcade.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An arcade date? In my fanfiction? It's more likely than you think!
> 
> Listen, if I don't send Yugi and Yami off to be dorks and enjoy a night of friendly competitive gaming, I'm failing my own life. It's one of the things I wished they'd been able to do in the anime/manga.

The arcade was crowded. Yami had to take a couple of deep breathes in order to calm his racing heart for a second but he still had a hold on Yugi and he used that to ground himself. Yugi pointed over to a series of games, “Let’s start there. Those are most like the ones we’ve played at home.” Yami nodded, following him in the direction he was led. It took a couple of rounds to learn the controls but he learned them quickly and gave Yugi a run for his money in about the fourth round. 

He won in the sixth and seventh.

Yugi groaned, playfully flopping on to the machine. Yami chuckled. They moved on to the next couple of games before stopping at a crane came where Yugi won them a pair of matching teddy bears. Both were brown in color and had the cutest little bow ties around their necks. Yami took the gift gratefully. A small blush appeared on his face and Yugi noticed this but said nothing because he was in the middle of remembering how to speak. 

They left the arcade some time later. There was no hesitation now; Yami took his hand and held it, walking side-by-side with him. They didn’t speak for some time. 

“Thank you,” Yami eventually said, “I’m really glad that I awoke in this time period.” He smiled, his eyes closing for a second, “It has its oddities but I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” Yugi squeezed his hand.

“I’m glad you’re here too Yami.” He paused. His tongue felt heavy all the sudden but he really… He really wanted to say what was there but he couldn’t force the words out. He stopped walking. Yami did too since he was holding his hand. The other turned, a look of confusion on his face as he looked Yugi up and down.

“Is something wrong partner,” he asked softly. Yugi squeezed his hand.

Looking up, determinedly, Yugi practically shouted, “Yami, I….” He gasped. Yami blinked.

“What’s wrong?” Yugi pointed. This caused Yami to turn immediately; standing behind him, practically like he had come from the shadows himself, was Malik. His face was more twisted than before and the veins appeared across it, bulging, pulsing. He immediately pulled Yugi behind him which muted the glow of the Puzzle a bit. “Malik!” The demented man bowed.

“Greetings Guardian,” he jeered, “I’m here to finish what we started the other day.” He raised the rod. “Come with me.” 

Yugi stepped forward, “There’s no way I’m letting him go with you!” Malik’s expression didn’t change. 

“Of course you aren’t,” he taunted, “Because you’re Yugi Mutou, loyal to a damn fault.” Yami glared.

“I’m not going without him Malik.” He laughed.

“I wouldn’t have expected any different.” He snapped his fingers. Suddenly, Yugi was grabbed by the collar, violently pulled backwards and his hand ripped from Yami’s. He spun. A man with the Millennium Eye on his forehead, his face narrow and gaunt, jeered at him, holding Yugi tightly across the chest as he pressed the tip of a knife into his neck. A trickle of blood emerged from where he pressed it. Yami gritted his teeth as Malik laughed again. “I’m not taking no for an answer.” He turned, leading the way off the busy street, and back into the shadows.

Yami followed obediently.

Yugi clenched his fists and was shoved forward, nearly falling to the pavement. His eyes shot to his captor, still holding the knife. A second man appeared then and while the first one held him, he removed the puzzle from around his neck, sending him back to following the other two. He gritted his teeth.

_ There had to be something he could do _ .

Whatever it was eluded him though. Yugi was brought to a halt at the very edge of the apparent battlefield, the man then grabbed his shoulder, raising the knife again as a reminder to behave. He glared at him. He turned back to the battle that was beginning: Yami stood with his back to him and if it wasn't for the light from the lone lamp, he wouldn't have been able to see Malik standing across from him, head tilted almost like he had no control over it. The expression he'd taken to wearing and flashing at them never changed, even as he spoke, “Since you're familiar with shadow games, we can skip the formalities.” He licked his lips, “I can't wait to end you Guardian.”

“What is your problem with me Malik,” Yami demanded. He raised the rod, aiming it at him.

“My family,” he hissed, “was destroyed by duty! A duty to protect your tomb, a tomb that was lost to the sands of time, and a man that none even remembered the name of.” He dropped his hand, “My father was killed for this duty. If you didn't exist, none of this would have happened.” Yami’s face twisted.

“Malik, I had nothing to do with your father's death,” he returned even as he fought off the feeling of familiarity. “I didn't ask for this anymore than you did.”

“Silence,” he ordered. “What you wanted or didn’t want doesn’t matter. What does is the fact that we are here now, all because fate said we had to be and I don’t intend,” he raised the rod once more, “to let you walk away from this!” His item began to glow as did the eye upon his forehead. The wind suddenly grew intense. “I’ve been using this time wisely Guardian. You aren’t the only one with a connection to the gods! Behold!” Yami covered his face as did the three people behind him. The Millennium Puzzle began to glow as brightly as the rod but the light coming from Malik was too much; they were forced to look away. 

It sounded like the very world itself was ending. There was a loud explosion followed by a roar that could only be described as coming from a monster and when Yugi went to look, he thought that Malik was still in the process of summoning. Then, his face paled.

He wasn’t.

His monster was literally that bright.

And big.

It was a god, there was no doubt about that.

Yami’s expression mirrored his own and he staggered back, “What in the world…?”

“Behold,” Malik shouted, “The Winged Dragon of Ra!” The creature reared back its golden head and roared again. The sound made them cover their ears. Malik laughed. “Even you don’t stand a chance against this Guardian! Come! Summon your monster!” Yami gritted his teeth.

Yugi stared at him then at his captors. Damn it. If only he could get a hold of the puzzle… The Dark Magician wasn’t going to be able to stand against a spirit monster like that on its own. Gandora might be able to help… not much but it would be better than what he currently had. He would have to bide his time. There was going to be an opening, that he was sure of, and as soon as it presented itself, he was going to have to strike. 

He just hoped they weren’t dead by that time.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been fighting off a headache for three days now thanks to the weather. 
> 
> I woke up at 5 AM this morning and haven't been able to go back to sleep.
> 
> I go back to work tomorrow bright and early and the kids come back next Monday. 
> 
> Blast, I really didn't want to acknowledge today. I'm sorry for ranting but today is really not a good day for me. I hope someone gets a little pleasure out of it though with this chapter.

The explosion rocked the ground, sending debris flying.

Yami jumped over an old seesaw before it was obliterated in one blast by the Winged Dragon. He went sprawling into the grass. A groan tore from his lips. The Dark Magician attempted to stave off another attack from his master but his attacks were just an irritant to the dragon that growled and swatted him easily out of the way. Yami pushed himself up, shaking his head. He scrambled out of the way of yet another blast that tore the ground apart where he had been laying. Malik laughed, following the action without moving an inch from his own spot, “That’s right Guardian! Struggle! Make your end that much more pathetic!” Yami ducked down behind a tree, trying to regain his breath. He could see Yugi from his place. His violet eyes were locked on him, wide and fearful, but he could also see the deep desire to do something.

Yet, there was nothing he could do.

His hands were tied, just like his.

He jumped again. Another blast. He ended up rolling back to his feet but made sure to run in the opposite direction of where his partner was being held. Malik may not care for the people he had taken as his slaves, but he was not going to risk Yugi anymore than necessary.

He was also going to end this before Yugi even had to get involved.

The Dark Magician flew down next to him as he ran. He held out a hand which Yami took and the monster secured him quickly before flying them out of the reach of yet another of the dragon’s blasts. He dropped him off out of range. The magician nodded before turning and circling high around its head, trying to attack from all angles which, unfortunately failed. The Dark Magician tisked. Yami cupped his hands around his mouth, “Don’t give up! Keep going!”

“Don’t you see that it’s pointless,” Malik snickered. Yami glared at him. Not that it did any good; Ra stepped forward into the line of sight and sent a blast in his direction. He barely avoided being hit thanks to the Dark Magician again. He looked up at him in relief.

"Thank you.” The monster nodded and sat him down again. Yami wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. “We can’t keep going like this. We’ve got to figure out a way to bring that monster down.” He eyed the magician sadly, “I’m afraid you just don’t have enough power alone my friend.”

“Guardian,” a familiar voice called out. All heads turned to face it. Rushing in from the opposite end of the park, Isis and Rishid approached the group. They stopped just short of the battle. She glared at her brother. “Malik.” He snickered.

“Well, well. If it isn’t my dear sister and her pet.” He leaned his head to the side, spreading his  arms, “And both chosen as well! How convenient for me!” He licked his lips. “How perfect. Once I finish off the Guardian and claim the Millennium Eye, I’ll be sure to claim your two items as well!”

Rishid threw out his hand, “Stop this at once Malik!”

“You have used the power of darkness,” Isis hissed, "to defile the gods."

Malik bowed, "Of course I have! The gods seemed to not care of defiling us of our future. Why should I care for respecting them?" He waved a hand to Ra who hissed. "I have proven that the darkness is stronger! It will change the course of time itself!"

Rishid shot Isis a look, "The darkness has involved him deeply."

"Sadly it is so." She raised her hands, forming a circle around the necklace; Rishid raised the key. She eyed Yami quickly, saying, “Guardian, you have the power to defeat him.”

Yami staggered, “The power… to beat him?” He clenched his fists, “But how?” She shook her head.  
  
“That is something only you can do,” she stated. “Doctor Hopkins told us of it before we left Egypt." She smiled at Yami, "Guardian, I have faith that you will find your answer, and when you do, it will free my brother from the Millennium Rod." Both of their Items began to glow brightly. Malik covered his face with his arm while the Winged Dragon turned it's head up, roaring in pain. "Rishid and I will distract him. Please, Guardian, find the way!" When the light died, two new creatures released a roar. The first was a humanoid-esque creature with long blue hair, a crown of feathers, and wings upon its back. Isis ordered this one by pointing towards Ra, “Go Spiria! Aid the guardian’s monster in this battle!"  
  
The second was a large, humanoid creature that reared back both of its heads in its combat yell. Both heads looked like that of the Jackal: thin, teeth bared, and pointed ears. Its body was covered in golden armor with both a shield and a battle axe at their disposal. Rishid pointed forward as she did, “Go Two Headed Jackal Warrior!”  
  
“Help them Dark Magician,” Yami ordered. The three monsters flew forward with a cry but Ra was unfazed; Malik chuckled and pointed as they did, and, without a word to it, gave his command. Ra opened its mouth. A ball of pure energy appeared there, circling for a few seconds as the monster breathed life into it.

Then it flew.

The world seemed to pause for a second. Yugi could see the impending explosion between the energy and the monsters and in that split second, he braced himself, getting ready for that distraction he needed….

Heat and air rushed over the nearby people. Yami, Isis, and Rishid covered their faces, as did Malik. The two cronies on the other hand, stupidly watched. Yugi closed his eyes for a second and opened his mouth. The goon holding him screamed. The other, blinked, trying to figure out what was going on only to find the small boy running at him, reaching desperately for the Millennium Puzzle. He sniggered. Raising it up and out his reach, he turned just enough that he could still hit the boy in the face.  
  
The scene was chaotic. The three monsters were blown back which also sent their masters flying as well. Rishid landed hard into a tree, clutching Isis to him for protection. He cried out. She looked up once they stopped moving but he slumped, forcing her to catch him and kneel, laying him down. 

"Rishid," she screamed. There was no response. His monster disappeared. She looked up desperately. Gone too was the Dark Magician. She stood once she was sure Rishid was alright and looked for Yami. The Guardian shook his head some feet away, groaning. His vision swam but he looked up at the sound of a rather sickening thud.

Yugi was falling. Blood was pouring from his nose where he had been hit. His vision darkened and he bounced once when he hit the concrete.

Yami felt his blood run cold.

He staggered slowly to his feet. With tears in his eyes, he called out, “Yugi.” No response. Louder he tried, “Yugi!” Still no response.

The only sounds now came from Malik who was laughing hysterically, one hand on his forehead, the other on his stomach. When he stopped, he eyed the two of them, “So this is the great power of the Guardian! I must say, after all the hype during my life, I’m finding myself rather disappointed.”  
  
Yami didn’t respond. Everything felt... numb. His body felt cold then hot then cold again as his widened eyes stared at Yugi who neither stirred nor looked at him. In that moment, never had he felt closer to the darkness. Yami turned his eyes away, his face becoming hidden in shadows. Isis, who had started forward to help him, stopped, a chill going down her spin and she stepped back to Rishid, protectively standing in front of him. The darkness listened. It whispered in eager tones at the pure rage radiating from its chosen. The air began to swirl. Thunder shook the air as lightning flashed across the sky. The darkness kept whispering. It was ready. Dark tendrils rose from the ground around the battle zone. They snaked towards the sky, dancing in the ever growing and violent wind. Malik was wise enough to start looking concerned. Ra growled lowly, looking around just as nervously as its master. Yami staggered forward and when his face appeared out of the darkness, it was enraged, the Millennium eye glowing far brightly than it ever had before. Yami raised a hand to the sky.

“Ancient gods," he shouted in his Native tongue, "I beseech you! Send me the aid to end this intruder to your lands!”  
  
Ra physically backed away with an angry hiss.

Malik grit his teeth. He pointed at him, “What are you waiting for? Finish him off!” Ra hissed again, opening its mouth. Yami's face turned back to them, his glare locked firmly on both of his opponents.

“Appear before me the guardians of the heavens! Appear Slifer the Sky Dragon and Obelisk the Tormentor!” Isis’s eyes grew wide. She ducked down over Rishid, covering his body from the impending contact. Malik stepped back.  
  
“It can’t be!” The sky darkened. From the clouds appeared two strikes of lightning; one tore the ground but the other returned to the heavens where a long, red, serpent like body appeared. The face of the dragon appeared and the largest of its three mouths opened in a mighty roar. A hand appeared from the split earth. It was clawed and massive. The body that followed was just as impressive and like its compatriot, it called out. Ra returned the call. Isis looked up when the world stopped trembling. She rose quickly at the sight.  
  
“He did it,” she whispered, “But this… this exceeded any of my expectations.” Malik growled.

“I do not fear your gods! Ra is the mightiest of them all!” Yami turned his expression on him. He took a step back.

There was no fear on Yami's face.

“You have intruded into the lands of the gods,” he told him, still in his birth tongue. Yami’s voice didn’t feel like his own. He felt invaded, different, controlled to an extent. He pointed at Malik, “You are foolish and with your dark magic, controlled a guardian. Now you shall pay. We shall have our revenge.” Slifer and Obelisk roared. Ra hissed. Malik paled but raised the rod, trying to maintain his composure.

“You can try. Go Ra! Show them your might!”

Ra spread its wings, readying for flight. However, Obelisk ran forward, the earth thundering with each step, and, just as Ra began to rise into the air, it grabbed the other’s claws, easily dragging it back down. Ra screamed. Slifer circled above. Yami raised his hand and the other flew straight into the clouds, aiming for the atmosphere. Obelisk wrestled with the golden creature for a few seconds, forcing it to the front. It quickly managed to get its arms around the golden god's body and secured it in place, Ra's chest exposed to the sky. Ra struggled to escape but Obelisk would not yield. Yami dropped his hand. Slifer, cried out, flying down towards the other two in a straight path. It sped up and, as it did, its body erupted into flames.

There was no chance.

Slifer connected dead center.  
  
The world went red.


	26. Chapter 26

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You know, for someone who is terrified of hospitals, I write a lot of scenes of people in them.

Yugi groaned and rolled over. At first, he was confused as to where he was but it didn’t take long to realize that he was, yet again, in the hospital. His face felt tender. Reaching up, he poked at the area around his nose and hissed when it sent pain shooting into the rest of him. Someone chuckled. He looked up from behind his hands as Isis entered the room, a smile brightly on her face as she sat a glass of water and some medicine on his bedside table, “You might want to be careful. You do have a broken nose.” She held her dress under her as she sat by his side. “Though thankfully no evidence of it; the doctors were able to set it before it became a permanent feature.” He smiled weakly at her.  
  
"It would’ve been a good story,” he joked. She shook her head but did laugh a little. He looked around. “Where’s Yami?”  
  
She looked over her shoulder at the curtain that separated him from his roommate, “Sleeping. You missed quite a bit when you took that hit.” He grew serious.

“What exactly did I miss?”  
  
“Yami was able to defeat Malik for one,” she confirmed, “but he did so by summoning the guardians of the gods.” Yugi blinked.

“So you’re saying… he summoned a god just like Malik did?” She nodded.

“Yes, but not just one. He summoned two.” Yugi blinked. She continued, “You see, the reason Yami was put into the tomb was because of his connection to the gods; only one with this kind of connection would have been able to summon them and use their power to defeat the coming darkness.” She closed her eyes. “That is at least what Doctor Hopkins has been able to tell me from what information he has gathered from his tomb. He is afraid there isn’t much more in terms of how to defeat this darkness exactly.”  Yugi nodded and squeezed his hands.  
  
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t much help out there this time,” he confirmed. She shook her head.  
  
“You were very brave Yugi. It was because of you that Yami was able to summon the gods he did.” She paused. "He spent a great deal of energy to make this miracle occur. I do not know if he would have the strength to do it again any time soon."

His shoulders slumped, “At least we know he can summon them now. That should be good for us... right?” She smiled.

“Yes, it is.” Isis stood then. Yugi watched her for a second.

“Isis?” She stopped. “What happened with Malik and the rod?” She paused before turning back to him.

“Yami summoned two gods,” she reaffirmed, “and they battled their brother. Together, they easily defeated the captured god and freed him from Malik’s evil control. Not only that. Once the darkness had been broken and weakened through one connection, it lost its control in the other. Malik was able to return to himself long enough to willingly pass the rod to Yami before he too collapsed." Her smile softened. "I had to call for some help but everyone made it here in one piece.” She paused again. “We all need the rest. We’re worn out. Return to sleep Yugi; tomorrow will be a brighter day.” He nodded before tucking back into the covers, rolling over to stare at the curtain, eventually returning to sleep.

*****

His vision swam when he woke up. It felt like fire was raging in every part of his body and Malik wanted to scream. He didn’t though. Someone appeared in his vision. He had to blink to be sure it was really Rishid he was staring at. He opened his mouth to ask something but only a cough came out and the standing man helped him sit up before giving him a bit of water. Rishid helped him back down then too. When it felt he was back to himself, he tried again. This time he was interrupted by the opening of his hospital room door and a crowd of people calling out excitedly.

The next thing he knew Jounouchi and Honda were upon him, excitedly welcoming him back. Anzu had to hit the two of them on the head before they would back off. Behind them, Yami leaned on a crutch while Yugi stood next to him, both smiling. Isis beamed and they gave her entrance to the room. She stood beside his bed, “Welcome back my brother.”

“Isis, Rishid, everyone,” he whispered. He coughed again and he was given more water. “Where am I? How did I get here?”

“How you got here was through giving us a heart attack man,” Jonouchi cut in. Malik blinked.

“Wh-what?”

“You disappeared while looking for that mysterious white haired guy,” Honda added in.  
  
“We searched for you for days,” said Anzu.

“But when we found you, you had the Millennium Rod and were totally crazy, trying to kill us,” Yugi stated. His eyes went wide and he looked down at his hands.

“Did… did that really happen?” He looked up to his family, who nodded, before turning to Yami who slowly nodded as well. He bowed his head again. “I’m sorry everyone….”

“Don’t be,” Jounouchi chirped, patting him roughly on the shoulder. “If anything’s to blame, it’d be that stupid Millennium Rod.” His face paled.  
  
“T-the rod chose me?”  
  
Isis nodded, “That it did my brother.” She motioned to Yami. “He defeated you though so it rightfully passed to him.” His shoulders relaxed.

“So does that mean…?” She shook her head.

“We do not know,” she told him softly, “if it will try to reattach to you. Rishid and I have asked an acquaintance to hold on to it for now as well as the scales that lay unclaimed and the eye.” She looked at Yami. He held up his hand.

“I understand,” he assured her. “You weren’t sure how long I was going to sleep. It was for the best.” She looked relieved. Jounouchi narrowed his eyes.

“How do we know your acquaintance can be trusted?” She turned on him and he backed off.  
  
“Because our acquaintance owes us a favor or two,” she hinted, “especially since I helped with one of his game designs a few years ago.”  
  
“No way,” Yugi cut in, causing everyone to look at him, “The only person I can think of that designs games and has the security for Millennium Items is Seto Kaiba!” The others gasped. Isis leaned her head to the side.  
  
“Is that a problem?”

“A problem,” Jounouchi scoffed, “The guy has an ego a mile wide….”

“But can be trusted to come through when needed,” she interjected. Jounouchi clapped his mouth shut. Honda patted his shoulder.  
  
“Sorry dude. Looks like we’re going to have to put up with him again.”  
  
“Yeah. I just thought I got enough of him when he finally left Domino High.” He groaned flopping back on the bed. The Ishtars eyed the others but Anzu waved her hands.

“Don’t ask. It’s a long story,” she sighed. Isis shrugged. Rishid stood then, pulling out from his coat, a CD.  
  
“Whether you like him or not, he was able to get us this,” he added. “It’s the security video for the Museum.” Isis turned to her bag which had been sitting on one of the extra chairs. She pulled from it a state of the art laptop which she opened and held out her hand for the CD, placing it in the drive. The others gathered around her.  
  
“Hopefully this will give us some of our answers,” she noted. She pressed play once the player popped up.  
  
They watched as the security camera focused on the dimly-lit room. Suddenly, a window to the left opened and three people, all clad in black appeared, climbing down the boxes expertly with no struggles at all. They looked around. Some words passed between them but the camera had no audio so they couldn’t tell what was said. They moved quickly to the box with the items in it. It had to have been the right one as they popped the lid off and the first guy grabbed the eye, holding it up to examine under a headlamp he was wearing. Suddenly, the door opened and the long stream of light that appeared with it, revealed that someone was standing there. That someone stepped into the room. The room went completely dark as the door shut. Everyone watching the video held their breaths. The lights suddenly flashed on in the room after about a minute; two of the black clad men were lying on the ground but the third was missing. The fourth intruder seemingly tisked. He walked to the box and lifted out the rod and ring, the latter of which was put around his neck. He turned then, smiling menacingly at the camera.

“Stop the video,” Yugi ordered. Isis did. Right on the face of their mysterious man. She looked up to find the expressions of all four of them varied: shocked, angry, frustrated, and betrayed.

“What’s wrong,” she asked. Jounouchi punched the bed.  
  
“I can’t believe it! He tricked us!”  
  
“He probably was getting close because of the Millennium Puzzle,” Anzu whispered.

“Yeah and we foolishly let him get near it,” growled Honda. The Ishtars looked around concerned.

Isis spoke calmly, “Are you saying you know who this is?” Yugi nodded his head.

“He’s the new kid at school. His name’s Ryou Bakura.”


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Introducing everyone's favorite a-hole. I had to get him in here somehow. I just hope I didn't write him too OOC. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Seto Kaiba was a man described by many in different ways: Brilliant, handsome, intelligent, rough, egotistical, maniac, disagreeable, so on and so forth. Not that he gave much to the opinions of others. He'd learned a long time ago that human ideas were fleeting and by the time one idea even had a chance to sink its teeth into him, he was already on the move, usually leaving those following him confused and dazed. There weren't many who could play his game. Which was fine. He didn't intend to leave many standing when he was done.

Kaiba, despite all of this, was not completely heartless (an idea mostly spread by those who hated him). There were many that loved him. A handful of kids come to mind first, the ones who sat in the orphanage he had once sat in before he was adopted.

He sighed, pulling at the tie around his neck. It wasn't often that he wore a suit but he had had a pretty big meeting today to deal with the collapse of Industrial Illusions since it seemed the owner and Kaiba Corps partner, Pegasus J. Crawford, was seemingly arrested. For what, he still didn't know. His men were still trying to get that information. A hand touched his arm and he blinked, looking down at the owner. Mokuba stared at him. His face was concerned and Kaiba tried to change his expression to assure him but all he seemed to be able to manage was a small smile. Kaiba reached up to pet Mokuba’s head.

"Are you alright," Mokuba asked. Kaiba sighed again, running a hand through his own hair. Mokuba allowed this for a second but didn’t accept it as an answer to the question. He stared his brother down until he answered.

"I'm alright," Kaiba promised, "just tired." Mokuba nodded.

"That meeting was pretty boring." Kaiba chuckled.

"Only because those wind-bags wouldn't shut up."

Mokuba made a face and mimicked one of them, "It would be best if Industrial Illusions was treated as a stake-holder controlled company until...." Kaiba chuckled lightly and flicked him on the forehead which caused him to stop.

"It's done. We don't have to deal with this again," he mentioned, handing his briefcase to one of the men who followed him. He finally undid his tie all the way. The door to the limo was opened for them and he started to usher Mokuba in when someone chuckled. He looked up.

Standing about ten feet away from them was a boy with long, wild, white hair. A gold ring around his neck shined in the evening light and it caught his attention only because it looked similar to the items he had recently agreed to hold on to. He straightened. The bodyguards immediately moved, protecting their boss as was their paycheck, but Kaiba didn't flinch, his expression changing not once. The stranger stepped closer. One of the guards ordered him to stop and he did, his lips twisted into a rather gruesome grin. Kaiba narrowed his eyes, "Who are you?"

"Don't mind me," he stated, "I'm here for some items you seem to be holding."

"I'm assuming you mean the ones that match your tacky jewelry," he nodded. The stranger snickered.

"Tacky yes but rather powerful." He held out his hand. "So I'll take them back if you don't mind."

"Don't bother," Kaiba snapped. "I know for a fact you don't own those items and I won't be handing them over." He started to climb into the limo again. "Thanks for wasting my time."

"I'm afraid I wasn't asking for them. I was ordering them back." Kaiba started to respond but the stranger started laughing; the "tacky" necklace started to glow but the light was quickly diminished by the inky darkness that dripped out of it. It surrounded them, rising up to form like a dome above them. Mokuba clung to his back.

"S-Seto," he stuttered. Kaiba raised his arm to keep Mokuba hidden behind him. He gritted his teeth. The stranger was still laughing as he stepped back, allowing the darkness to swallow him. Kaiba tensed. The guards looked around frantically.

Suddenly, something appeared out of the darkness and grabbed one of the guards who screamed before he was pulled into the wall. Three others met the same fate. Kaiba ducked with Mokuba, dancing around the tendrils that seemingly were appearing from nowhere. He kept a tight grip on his brother. He slung him around, haphazardly to keep him out of reach. Just as quickly as the attack began, it stopped. Kaiba froze. Mokuba froze. They listened. They waited. Another tendril came out then, coming straight for him which meant he only had time to dance left with his brother, pushing him back behind him.

"Seto," Mokuba shouted. Kaiba turned, finding a pair of pale white hands grabbing Mokuba's jacket, yanking him quickly into the darkness. "Seto!"

"Mokuba!" He grabbed his leg, tugging. The darkness and the hands didn't release him. In fact, they overpowered him. Mokuba's leg slipped from his grasp and he stumbled forward, nearly landing on his face.

Kaiba rolled. He growled, looking up only to discover that he was on the street, alone.

Mokuba was gone.

It didn't take long for the realization of what had happened to hit him. Kaiba shouted before punching the concrete, causing his knuckles to bleed. People from inside the Kaiba Corps building, rushed out, concern laced on their voices as they came closer. He ignored them.

Kaiba stood. He was usually intimidating just as is; this time, everyone physically backed off from him, fear quaking through their bodies at the mere sight of him. He roughly pulled his phone out of his pocket. He redialed his last call.

The phone rang as he stormed his way back into the building. It took a few seconds but then...

"Hello Kaiba," Isis stated. "I'm surprised you're calling me...."

"Cut the crap Isis," he snapped. "My brother's been taken." She fell silent and he could hear movement in the background, like she had just shot out of her chair.

"What did you say?"

"My brother's been taken," he seethed, "and I'm going to get him back with those stupid items you asked me to protect."

"Kaiba...." He didn't wait. He closed the phone with a snap and he immediately spoke to the people following behind him.

"I want those items we put in the security vault brought to me now," he ordered. They bowed to him. A few disappeared to do as they were ordered.

Within moments, he had what he wanted. He had changed as well into a fully black outfit with a white coat. It was his preferred outfit. He usually wore it for all occasions. It didn't take long, essentially, for him to return outside to where the limo was still waiting, only with a new hired hands waiting for him. They bowed to him. Another car drove up then. He didn't bother to glance at it until someone called his name, "Kaiba! Wait!"

"I don't have time to wait Isis." He froze. Isis wasn't alone. Behind her stood a slew of familiar faces and he grunted, "Great. You brought the dork squad."

"Calm the fuck down Kaiba," Jounouchi returned. "We're here to help you find Mokuba."

"If you're the help then I'd be better off looking on my own."

"Look man, we only want to help," Honda added. Kaiba glared at him and the three of them entered into a staring match that Yugi was certain had lightning flashing between them. Yugi sighed.

Anzu clapped her hands and the three of them turned to look at her, "That's enough of this childishness from the three of you. We've got Mokuba to worry about." Kaiba turned.

"I never stopped worrying."

"We got that," Anzu mumbled. Isis stepped up.

"What exactly happened Kaiba? Why are you taking those items," she motioned to his case, "With you?" His grip tightened on the handle.

"Some freak with white hair and one of these things appeared and took my brother." Yami stepped forward.

"Then that means Bakura's made his move." Kaiba eyed him up and down.

"And who are you? A new member of the dork squad?" Yugi wanted to scream since it now seemed that lightning was flashing between the two of them. Anzu clapped her hands again.

"Alright, seriously. We don't have time for this," Yugi cut in before she could, "Kaiba, this is Yami. He's the one who owns the items you're about to ante up."

"Right. Just realizing I still don't care."

"You should," Isis added, "Since Yami is a skilled shadow games duelist; he might be your only chance at getting your brother back at all." Kaiba eyed him again. After a few seconds of silence, he turned, starting to climb into his car. They rushed forward. The window was rolled down a bit and all they could hear out of him was, "Not interested." The limo speed off. The group was left to stare at each other, completely dumbfounded by what they had just experienced. Yami pointed at the retreating car.

"Is he always like this?"

"This was him being nice," Yugi noted.

"This is why I told you it was a bad idea to get him involved," Jounouchi groaned. Isis shook her head.

"He was our best bet to keep the items safe."

"It's alright," Yugi stated. All eyes turned to him. His face was set into determination. "Kaiba maybe didn't want it but we're going to help him either way. He's over his head with these shadow games. If he faces Bakura, you can bet that it's going to be an uneven match." Yami touched his chin.

"But it makes no sense. Kaiba isn't chosen by any of those items. Even if they were to battle, Bakura wouldn't gain the items."

"We can worry about the particulars later," Isis cut in. "We need to divide and see if we can find either of the Kaibas or Bakura." They nodded. It was agreed that Rishid would go with Jounouchi and Honda on foot in one direction, Isis and Anzu would take the car, and Yugi and Yami would head in a third direction. They agreed to stay in contact. If anyone found anything, at least one of them was to call immediately and let the others know. "Bakura is dangerous," Isis reminded them. "From everything we've seen, has powers over the darkness that we have not seen before. All of us will probably need to face him down; remember, he has some kind of agenda we can only guess at right now." Isis nodded to Yami, "None of us are weak but the risk of death will be much higher. No offense." He waved a hand.

"None taken."

"Great," Jounouchi stopped them, "If we're done being stupidly polite to each other, I suggest we get moving." He nodded to Rishid. "Come on big guy. We're going to need to check the back alleys. Kaiba'll stick out like a sore thumb." He nodded. Together, that group took off. Anzu climbed into the car.

"Don't worry," she addressed Yugi, "We'll swing by the game shop too to check on Grandpa." He nodded.

"Thanks. Be careful if you find him there."

"We will," Isis assured him. She started the car and they took off. The two shared a look. They started running off in the third direction, hoping and praying to all the gods above that they made it in time before anyone was seriously hurt.


	28. Chapter 28

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cool. So normally I would go through and make absolutely certain that I caught all my mistakes and fixed minor plot holes but it currently is stupid-early o'clock and I actually have to go to work for the first time in two months. Yeah! School starts next week so I'm glad to be finished posting tomorrow!
> 
> Enjoy!

Kaiba stepped out of his limo. He'd had his people searching through thousands of different cameras linked throughout the city; the great thing of being him was that he had that kind of access. An excited phone call came through to him.

"Mr. Kaiba," the female stated, "We've found the person you're looking for! It appears he's at the Domino docks."

He hung up without so much as a thank you. He glared at the driver, "Domino Docks."

"At once Mr. Kaiba," he responded. The driver sped up. Kaiba turned, looking out the window. The docks were not that far from where they were currently at and it would be only a few minutes before they arrived. He gripped the case tighter. He didn't care for them or these shadow games. All he wanted was his brother, the last of his blood relatives, the one person he had promised to protect no matter what. He wanted to punch something. So he did. Thankfully the door was made of good materials and didn't yield under his touch nor damaged his second hand. The first was wrapped up, a hasty job done by one of his subordinates.

The limo stopped a few minutes later. He came out of his daze as the door opened and the man bowed to him as he climbed out.

A sea breeze blew across the area. It ruffled his hair but he didn't bother to mess with it. His train flew behind him, dramatically of course, as he walked down the docks. He only briefly looked back over his shoulder. "Wait there." The man bowed.

"Yes Mr. Kaiba."

He turned back, heading down said area. The buildings were on his left. Ocean, his right. His eyes didn't acknowledge either; he continued on for several feet until there finally was some movement to his left. From the shadows of the buildings, appeared the white haired boy. He smirked and turned. Kaiba had to stop himself. Standing in front of him, was Mokuba, passed out and supported only by the hand that was wrapped around his front. He extended his free hand.

"I'll take those now." Kaiba humphed.

"Only if I get him first." He waved his finger.

"You clearly don't know who it is you're dealing with."

"I could say the same to you."

"Oh but I do. Seto Kaiba, CEO extraordinaire. Orphaned at a young age and left with his only close blood relative," he knelt down, pinching Mokuba's face, which made Kaiba grimace, "as his only support. That is, until he beat Gozaburo Kaiba, CEO of the greatest military company in the world, in a little game of chess, thus ensuring that the two of them were adopted and you could regain the fortunes your callous family had so easily squandered in your youth." He stood back up. "Trust me, I know _exactly_ who I am dealing with." Kaiba gritted his teeth. Without further hesitation, he tossed the case to the exact midpoint between the two of them and the maniac only smirked at it. Kaiba’s eyes narrowed.

“Return my brother,” he demanded.

"Afraid that's not how this is going to work," he sneered. "You see, in order for me to really get my hands on those, I'm afraid you're going to have to die.” Kaiba braced himself. "Isis did you so wrong. Asking you to be a guardian without explaining the rules." He smirked. "You see, as a guardian, you are a stepping stone. I'll get the items. Sure. However, they will be useless because their owners still... annoyingly _own_ them. Once I finish you, I'll be sure to finish off the true owners with no issues."

Kaiba started to say something. However, he was cut off with, "Don't think it'll be that easy Bakura!" He looked behind him. Running towards them were two members of the dork squad: Yugi and Yami. He narrowed his eyes at them as they stopped in front of him. Yugi took a step forward, "Don't think we're going to hand any of these items over to you just like that."

Bakura grinned, "Ah, speaking of the true guardian. How nice of you to join us. Yami is it?" Yami narrowed his eyes. There was something... off about his expression, about the way he scanned him over. It was almost as if... Bakura _knew_ him. He raised a hand.

"We're ending this here Bakura," he returned.

At the same time, three items lit up and, when they did, three monsters appeared. The first was the Dark Magician who once more bowed to Yami before raising his staff, readying for combat. The second was the dark dragon, Gandora, who spread its wings in a mighty roar before swishing its tail and staring down his opponent. The last was... well... a demon. It was grayish in color with a long torso and wings on its back. However, its face was expressionless and where there should have been legs, there was, instead, a second head that looked like the face of a snake. The snake head hissed at them. Yugi stepped back, "What in the world is that?" Bakura laughed.

"This? This is Diabound. My shadow monster." He looked up at the Dark Magician, snickering. "How cute. You and your brother have the same _ka_." Yami's eyes widened.

"How do you know about Heba," he hissed. Bakura blinked for a second before throwing his head back, laughing. It took a few moments for him to regain himself. When he did, it was mildly terrifying. He looked completely wild.

"Well, great Guardian," he hissed, "you aren't the only one from Ancient Egypt." The two of them jerked.

"What," Yugi shouted.

"That's not possible," Yami returned.

He laughed again, "Oh it very much is possible. You see, your silly mentor wasn't the only one with some powerful magic on his side." He licked his lips. "I started the rebellion that night. Blood had to be shed in order to ensure the magic would work." He clenched his fist. "Worked like a charm I'd say even though your brother and that stupid magician of his," he glared at the Dark Magician, "gave me a world of trouble.”

 Yami gritted his teeth, “If you Heba could stop you then so can I!”

His opponent threw his head back and laughed once more. It was crazed. When he returned to them, Yugi was sure he had lost his mind.

“That fraud,” Bakura hissed, “did nothing but help me further my plans.”

“Heba was no fraud,” Yami growled.

“You really are clueless,” Bakura laughed. He pointed straight at him. “You were the god’s chosen! You were meant to be pharaoh!”

Yugi looked to Yami, "You were....?" Yami’s blood ran cold. He looked as if he was a spacing out, in complete and total shock. His body felt numb honestly. His mind was struggling to wrap around anything the boy standing across from them was saying. Yugi growled, snapping back around.

Bakura was smirking at them arrogantly, “And now, my revenge will be complete!”

Yugi gritted his teeth. He took a step forward and pointed, "Alright Gandora! Let's do this." The dragon roared. He spun, lashing out with his tail. The Dark Magician moved out of the way, shooting his master a concerned look. Yami still didn't move.

Diabound easily stopped Gandora's tail. He twisted, sending the creature up into the air before causing him to slam hard into the ground. Dust rose from the spot and there were definitely cracks now in the dock area. Yugi gasped, clutching at his chest. It hurt! His knees buckled. Bakura smirked at him again. When the dust cleared, Gandora staggered to its feet, shaking his head. Yugi's breathing had become ragged. Diabound hadn't even received a scratch and it seemed like he was nowhere near being injured. Yugi gritted his teeth. "Are you good Gandora?" The monster rumbled in response. "Great! Let's try this again." He looked over at the Dark Magician but the monster was busy looking at his master; Yugi's eyes dropped to him too, concern laced there. He wasn't moving. It was like....

Before he could say anything, Kaiba came forward. He grabbed Yami by the front of his shirt and his eyes went wide. Kaiba pulled him up with both hands, his toes just barely touching the ground.

"I don't care," he hissed, "what issues you have with him from your past. You are here. Right now." Yami's eyes sharpened. He seemed to come back to him a bit.

He yanked himself away, "I know that!"

Kaiba glared him down, "Then why are you freaking out over this information?"

"Heba was...." His face twisted. "Heba was the oldest of us two. He was always destined to be king. I don't understand any of this." Kaiba didn't respond. Instead, he pulled his fist back, smacking hard into Yami's face, sending him sprawling. There was a moment of shock. Yugi tried to move towards them but was stopped when Diabound caught Gandora with its tail. He felt like he was suffocating. He had no choice but to return to the battle which was hard to do with the lack of air. Yami held his face. Kaiba stood over him, motioning to the world around them.

"I don't understand any of this but I understand that you're letting your emotions control you and keep you from doing what you need to do." He started to pull him up again. Only he was stopped this time by a hand. Kaiba froze and looked, surprised to see the monster he had summoned stopping him. He shook his head and Kaiba tisked, dropping his hand. The Dark Magician turned.

He knelt in front of him, "I am sorry my king." Everyone there froze. Never had they heard a monster speak before but this one certainly had. "It was always you. You were the one we promised to protect; you were the one meant to take the throne."

Yami shook his head, "I still...."

"It's all true," another voice told him. He turned, finding a smiling female at his side, helping him stand up. She wore a bright blue and pink outfit and had blonde hair with blue eyes. She smiled at him. "Everything you're hearing is true my king."

"Yes and once we put a stop to this nightmare," his original monster confirmed, "We'll be sure to explain what we can."

Yami looked between the two of them, the feeling of familiarity tearing deeply at his chest. He swallowed hard, nodding. A deep breath helped to clear his head and when he raised his eyes, the worry and doubt were temporarily gone. He raised a hand, “Go Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl! Help Gandora out!”

Bakura growled, “Stop them Diabound! Show them the power of darkness!”

The two magicians nodded to each other. They jumped out of the reach of the slow moving monster. The Dark Magician hit him squarely in the back of the head with an explosive attack while she moved towards the tail, using her own attack to which caused it to release Gandora and, consequently, Yugi. He collapsed to the ground, panting. Yami rushed forward to kneel by his side.

"Forgive me," Yami mumbled. Yugi looked up at him weakly.

"It's alright," he returned. Yami helped him stand, wrapping one arm around his back.

Gandora shook his massive head and growled out thanks. Now focused, the three monsters readied themselves. The Dark Magician started attacking from the front. Diabound took the hit easily. He staggered though when he was hit from behind by the Dark Magician Girl and then Gandora as it slammed into its side. Diabound roared. Bakura hissed, clutching at his side as the pain shot through him and he staggered, nearly dropping his captive. Neither of them fell. Yami clenched his fist, looking up at his two monsters who momentarily spoke to each other before attacking again. The Dark Magician Girl ended up wrapped up by the tail this time which made Yami feel like he was suffocating until Gandora appeared, biting at the restraint which hissed and dropped its prey. She waved to Yugi who smiled. They returned to the battle but it was becoming repetitive; neither side was budging. Bakura tisked.

Kaiba stepped forward, “You losers aren’t getting anything done.” They barely acknowledged him.

“Kind of busy,” Yugi shouted to him. He started walking closer to the battle, towards his brother, which caused the two of them to blanch. “Kaiba! Wait!”

“I’m done waiting,” he snapped, “for your pathetic attempts to actually work.”

“But you don’t know how to fight in a shadow game,” Yami added.

Kaiba glared at him from over his shoulder, “I’ll figure it out.” He turned back to Bakura who didn’t take his eyes off of him, tightening his hold on the younger brother. The wind suddenly picked up. Dark clouds rolled in overhead and Kaiba’s eyes seemed to glow with the intensity of the oncoming storm. Lightning struck as he shouted, “Give me back my brother!”

From the bolt appeared a new shape. It was massive, its armored body was completely white, but its eyes shimmered in a brilliant shade of blue. The creature spread its wings. It roared which reverberated around, shocking the monsters nearest it. Bakura’s face fell and he stepped back, visibly shaken. This didn't last long. He knew when he was outmatched. Bakura’s eyes shifted one way, then the next, and he smiled before securing his hold on his hostage.

With no warning, he flung Mokuba to the ocean.

Everyone cried out in shock. Kaiba didn’t hesitate though; he sprinted in the same direction, ready to catch him.  The dragon roared. It moved  with no order from its master but caught both brothers on its back just as Kaiba managed to wrap his arms around Mokuba. Bakura smirked. The darkness gathered behind him and he stepped back, allowing it to take him again.

Yugi jerked towards him, “Bakura’s running!” He ran.

“Yugi,” Yami shouted, “Wait!” The two magicians flew after him but it was Gandora that got there first. He shot out his tail, stopping Yugi in his tracks. Yami caught him from behind a second later. Yugi struggled for a second until the darkness was completely gone and they collapsed to the ground. “Yugi,” Yami soothed. “Yugi, he’s gone. It’s over for now.” Yami stroked a hand over his hair. Yugi clutched at him as tears appeared at the corner of his eyes.

“He got away,” he choked out. “We were so close but he go away.”

“We’ll get him,” Yami said. Their monsters faded a moment later as he continued to hug him.

He just hoped that it was true.


	29. Chapter 29

They were riding in the back of Kaiba’s limo but none of them spoke or even looked at each other. Yugi’s eyes stayed locked on the window. Night had fallen. Domino City sparkled in the evening gloom, casting long rectangles of light across their faces, giving them a sickly gray hue as they passed. He looked around after a few minutes. Yami was also looking out the opposite window, his chin in his hand, and his legs were crossed. He looked… lost. Yugi couldn’t help but wonder what he was thinking.

Kaiba shifted a bit which caught his attention. The brothers were on the longest seat with Mokuba’s head laid on his brother’s lap. Kaiba hadn’t removed his protective arm from around him since the dragon, Blue Eyes he corrected, had safely deposited them back on the docks. The boy didn’t seem to have any injuries on him. A soft smile crossed Yugi’s lips in relief that they had managed to save him.

They stopped in front of the Kame Game shop where a crowd of people, Isis, Rishid, Jounouchi, Honda, Anzu, and Grandpa, came to the window. The two of them slipped out of the car. Yugi held the case that Kaiba had given them, icily ordering the Items away from him and Mokuba for good. The other’s began to demand what happened but Yami bowed a bit, apologizing to all of them. They had been so caught up with Bakura that there hadn’t been a chance to call. When the door was shut, Kaiba started to order the car away but Yami stopped him, “Kaiba, wait.”

There was a pause but the window rolled down a bit. He glared at him. “For what exactly,” he retorted, “I’m don. Mokuba’s safe. We’re going home.”

“We could really use your help.”

“I’m not interested in giving it.” Yami had to bite his lip.

“Kaiba…..”

Mokuba stirred next to his brother. Kaiba immediately turned his attention to him as his eyes fluttered open and he sat up a bit, confused, “Seto?”

“You’re alright,” he breathed, brushing a bit of hair off Mokuba’s forehead. Mokuba blinked and looked up out the window, recognizing Yugi immediately.

“Yugi,” he greeted. Yugi smiled at him.

He leaned in a bit to see him better, “Hey there Mokuba. It’s been a while.” He nodded.

“Where are we,” Mokuba asked.

“My Grandpa’s game shop,” Yugi replied, earning a look from Kaiba. “Do you remember what happened?”  


There was a pause. Slowly, Mokuba recounted his story, “I… remember being grabbed. It was dark. Nothing but darkness until…” Kaiba squeezed his shoulder as Mokuba shivered then smiled up at him sadly. His eyes were full of fear, “… _they_ arrived.”

“Shadow monsters,” Yami confirmed. Mokuba nodded. He gripped tightly to Kaiba’s jacket.

“Seto,” he pleaded, “we have to do something. Please don’t let them become real.” His knuckles became white. “That… that’s all they would say. How the darkness would make them real. How they’d destroy our world and kill all people.” Tears appeared at the corners of his eyes. He didn’t break contact with his brother, “Please….” Kaiba looked down at him, considered it for a second, before he closed his eyes, sighing.

“Alright. I’ll help.” Mokuba smiled brightly before hugging his waist. Kaiba didn’t bother to get out of the car though. He crossed his arms instead, “What’s the plan?”

Isis stepped forward, “The most obvious is to defeat Bakura.”

“Well that’s great,” Kaiba snapped. “What a fancy way to say you have no idea.” Yugi looked down, clutching the case in front of him. There was a moment of silence between them all until Isis closed her eyes.

“The only one ,” she said slowly, “Who can tell us that, is the Guardian.” All eyes turned to Yami. His face paled, eyes going wide.

“I don’t know what to do,” he countered. Rishid stepped forward, hand out stretched. He was offering the key to him.

“Maybe this will help,” he said softly. Yami looked between him and the item; meanwhile, Isis had reached up and unclasped the necklace, offering it as well. Now, he looked between the two of them. Yami closed his eyes. He held out both of his hands to accept them. The Millennium Eye appeared on his forehead and both items began to glow as they touched his skin. He marveled at their warmth. He opened his eyes but there was nothing but confusion there.

“What’s wrong,” Isis asked.

Yami licked his lips, “I….” He looked down at Yugi, unsure of what to say. “I’m just… trying to sort through my memories.”

Jounouchi snapped his fingers, “That’s right! You get some with each new item right?” He nodded in response. “Anything useful this time?” All eyes turned hopefully to him and Yami felt a sudden pressure to perform. He took another breath.

“I… I remember that the name of our enemy is Zorc,” Yami whispered, “He is a monster created from the darkness in human hearts.” He closed his eyes, trying to concentrate. “He was sealed by the items and if we… we can get them together, we can prevent him from coming back.” He opened them again. “That’s all.”

Kaiba’s eyes narrowed, “Great. When are you going to remember the rest? When we’re in the heat of battle?” Yugi stepped up.

“Knock it off Kaiba,” he hissed. “It’s not his fault his memories are gone.” Everyone was stunned for a second but the tension only grew for moment until Kaiba finally looked away.

“Whatever,” he growled. He rolled the window back up, indicating he was done with this conversation. The limo took off. They watched him disappear over the horizon.

“Well, that was awkward,” Honda confirmed. Everyone nodded. Isis cleared her throat.

“In any case, we should all consider going to bed. We will need to be ready for anything that comes up and,” she directed at the high schoolers, “it will be your day off. We’ll be able to do more in the morning.”

“You’re right,” Anzu replied. “Let’s go guys.”

“Night all,” came from Jounouchi as he started walking.

“Sleep well,” added Honda as he followed him. Anzu smiled to them before calling for the boys to wait and to at least walk her home- just in case.

“We’ll meet here in the morning,” Isis confirmed to those who remained, “I’ll let Kaiba know.”

“I think he’d rather we met at his tower,” Rishid suggested.

“Possibly,” she smirked. There was a mischievous glimmer in her eye but she didn’t elaborate any further as the two of them bade good night to the three of them, slid into the car, and left for the night. Yami, Yugi, and Grandpa watched until it was out of sight.

“That ended rather abruptly,” Grandpa mused. The two of them nodded and he turned towards the door. “I don’t know about the two of you but I’m tired. I think I’ll head straight up to bed. Gotta have the strength for tomorrow and everything.” Yugi smiled, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

“Alright Grandpa. See you tomorrow.” The older man smiled and left. Yugi turned, eyeing him; Yami wouldn’t look him in the face for a few moments. “You… coming?”

Yami blinked, “What? Oh, yeah.” He paused. Rubbing the back of his neck, Yami looked away for a moment. “I.. I think I’m going to walk for a bit. I have some things I need to sort through.”

Yugi’s grip tightened on the case, “I’ll go with you…” Yami held up a hand.

“I need to go alone,” he whispered. Yugi froze. His eyes went wide, mouth slightly agape and Yami had to shake his head, “I promise, I’ll talk when I come back. I just… I need to sort it out first.” Yugi hesitated. Then he nodded.

Before he walked inside, Yugi turned to the door, and held it open while he said, “Don’t be too late. I’ll be here… waiting.”

Yami started to say something but it was too late. Yugi disappeared into the blackened building, leaving him out in the cold. Yami shivered. He wrapped the jacket he wore tighter around himself. His head felt like it was spinning as he headed off down the street. He wasn’t feverish. There was no illness in him that he could name except for a weariness that he couldn’t get rid of and he was certain that only the end of this whole situation could bring him any form of salvation. The cool air hurt his throat but the pain, he thought, was almost welcomed since it grounded him. He felt so distant from himself especially after all of the information he had gained that day.

He wanted to scream. He didn’t though considering it was late. He made his way through the mostly empty street and into a nearby park where he found a bench. He collapsed onto it, letting his head fall back against the wood. He let the cool air wash over his skin for a moment. He just… felt with every inch of his body. When he was sure he wasn’t going to run away, he leaned forward, breathing deeply. Yami held out a hand.

The magic flowed through him. This was the first time he actually had used it as thing and not a weapon. It was gentle. There was warmth in it that he welcomed in the chilling autumn air.

It didn’t take long for his servants to appear.

Yami opened his eyes but his expression was sad, tired. He looked to have aged a thousand years in one night. The Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl bowed to him in greeting. Yami licked his lips, “I need to speak to the two of you.” He paused. “You aren’t… I know you two or different but I can’t pinpoint how exactly.”  They shared a look.

“We…,” the Dark Magician girl started. She eyed her partner, pleading for help but he closed his eyes, taking up the conversation.

 

“Yes,” he confirmed. “We are different but we are not at liberty to share why.” He opened his eyes, staring at him seriously, “We made a promise that we intend to keep.” Yami nodded.

“I can respect that.” He paused. “I need… some information though. My memories… they are still scattered.” He held his head in his hand and the Dark Magician Girl flew down, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder until he looked up. At this point, she looped her arm through his, resting her head on his shoulder. She was warm.

“We know that it’s confusing,” she breathed, “but we’ll do our best to answer what we can.” He looked up at the Dark Magician who nodded, smiling softly at him.

“I know you will. Which is why I need to ask… when I… when we finish gathering the items, what will happen to me?” His eyes were unwavering as he looked at the Dark Magician. “I remembered more when Isis and Rishid gave me the items; I remember Siamun saying something about my name being important and that the punishment was not complete.” The Dark Magician Girl squeezed his arm. She was fighting back tears.

The Dark Magician sighed before he began, “Yes, it is exactly as you think it is.”

“Your father created the items,” she whispered, her voice wavering, “but at a great price. The gods punished him for it but his body couldn’t handle the whole thing; he died before it was complete.”

“Which means that the gods are still not appeased,” the Dark Magician finished. Yami’s fists clenched at his knees.

“I am… to finish the punishment.” It wasn’t a question. It was a sure statement.

Neither of them replied. 

Suddenly, there was a gasp nearby. Yami’s eyes shot up in the direction of it. Yugi was standing there, illuminated by the street lamps, now in his pajamas, two cups of something warm in either of hands. His eyes were wide. Yami could see his frame shaking and there were tears in his eyes. The mugs fell. They shattered but Yami could honestly say he didn’t notice them since his eyes were locked on the now retreating form of his partner.

The Dark Magician and Girl were not surprised when he ran for him. She looked up at him, “I wonder if there’s anything we can do.” He bowed his head.

“Magicians we may be but even some miracles are out of our range.” She nodded sadly before they turned and left this world.

Meanwhile, Yami was sprinting. He’d never run so fast before in his life. Not even when he raced against his brother or even against the visiting prince of some country that probably no longer existed. He couldn’t… just a little more….

“Yugi,” he panted, “wait!” His hand wrapped around his wrist, roughly causing the two of them to stop. Yugi tugged.

“Let me go,” he cried. Yami’s grip tightened a bit.

“I’m not….”

“It’s not fair,” Yugi cut him off. Yami’s mouth fell open a bit as his partner turned, staring up at him, and not even bothering to stop the tears that were flowing. He shook his head, “It’s not fair Yami! You didn’t get your life in Egypt and now… and now….” The words stuck in his throat as he sobbed. Yami’s heart twisted. He slowly raised his hand, pulling Yugi towards him so they were embracing; he let him rest his head in his shoulder as he sobbed. Yami leaned his head forward to rest it on his. Yugi smelled of spice. His shampoo. Yami squeezed him tighter and rocked him a bit as he finished getting all of his tears out. Yugi responded by gripping the arms of his jackets. “It’s not fair,” he eventually whispered again. Yami sucked in a breath.

“Yugi,” he started. He pushed him back a so that the other was looking up at him. Yami hesitated for a second but then he reached up, cupping his cheeks with both hands, wiping under his eyes. “My life… my life has already been fulfilling. You and your friends have made it worth living.” He smiled softly. “I can’t thank any of you enough for giving me this time.”

Yugi squeezed his arm tighter, “You… you are such a horrible liar.” Yami blinked. Before he could respond, Yugi stood on tiptoe, catching him in the fiercest of kisses.

Yami melted.

Yugi’s lips were soft, yielding, and warm. Yami slid one hand up to tangle his fingers in his hair; the other went to the small of Yugi’s back, pulling him closer. Every inch of him that he pressed into felt electric. Yugi moved his hands as well. He slid one up to play with a bit of hair at the top of Yami’s neck. The other went to his chest. It felt like eternity. Oh how he wished time would just stop in that moment.

They broke apart for air a moment later. Both were breathing heavily. Yugi’s eyes wandered from his lips up to Yami’s eyes but once they landed there, his face erupted into flames. Yami couldn’t help it. His face turned red too.

They broke out of their embrace, much to Yami’s dismay and Yugi began to swing his hands around wildly, trying to hide his embarrassment.

“I-I-I…,” he stuttered. Yami’s smile softened. He reached out, catching one of his hands, and forced him to stop. Yugi’s eyes were a mix of wonder and embarrassment.

“It’s alright,” Yami soothed. His smile stayed soft as his hand tightened on Yugi’s. Yugi returned the gesture. “Whatever happens,” he breathed, “I will always be happy for this time. I’m proud and honored to be your partner.” Tears threatened Yugi’s eyes but he used his free hand to wipe them away.

“I want you to get what you deserve,” Yugi said. He seemed to grow straighter, taking a step back towards Yami. He was amazed at the sheer strength that seemed to radiate from his core. The light of the in the background gave Yugi a soft halo, making his following smile brilliant, “I want you to have a choice in what happens. You can’t keep losing everything and get nothing in return.”

Yami opened his mouth to say something. An unearthly howl cut him off. Both of them jerked. They couldn’t believe what they were seeing- it looked like a thunder cloud was rolling across the concrete. Yami didn’t release Yugi’s hand. His face paled and he took a step away from it, “Run!”

They turned. Yami was faster and easily took the lead, dragging Yugi as fast as they could.. The world around them grew darker. The howling became incestuous. Yugi looked back and his face grew pale. Within the rolling clouds were the faces of gaunt, eyeless faces. They screamed. Yami gritted his teeth, keeping a tight hold on Yugi’s hand, praying to whatever god could hear him that they got away in one piece.

It simply was not to be.

The clouds were supernaturally fast. Yami stopped, causing Yugi to nearly hit him in the back. He pushed him back behind him. They were trapped inside of a vortex. Wind whipped around them, causing them to cover their faces in some attempt at protecting themselves.

“Hang on,” Yami shouted. The howling grew louder. The wind stronger. Both of them gripped to each other desperately.

It didn’t do any good.

The wind grew in intensity. Yami peered over his arm, looking for something anchor them. There was only a lamp post nearby.

He slowly placed a foot forward.

The movement only managed to expose him to the furry of the wind. He went flying.

Yugi, who wouldn’t let go, ended up airborne too.

He screamed. Yami turned, trying to catch Yugi’s other hand. Both of them reached for the other.

“Yugi,” he screamed. He could feel his grip weakening.

Yugi stretched his free hand. He tried. Every time they got close, the wind blew harder, making their hands snap apart again. Fear shot through his eyes when he realized he wasn’t going to reach him.

Then, their hands slipped.

“Yugi!”

Yami was falling. The wind and howling was dying around him but Yugi was rising into the air. He screamed but Yami couldn’t hear him over the roar. The noise was too much.

Laughter suddenly rose above the wind. Yami glared, knowing full well that it belonged to Bakura. He was so focused on watching the receding darkness that he forgot to watch the ground. Yami landed with a hard thud on his back, his head smacking into the concrete. Pain shot through all of him and the world went white.

*****

“Yami? Yami? Wake up dear boy!”

His eyes fluttered and rolled. A groan came from him as he came back to himself. Yami looked around as his senses came back to him. The world was out of focus and it slowly returned, only for him to find himself cradled carefully in the arms of Grandpa. The older man sighed in relief, “Yami! Thank goodness you’re alright! I heard a noise and came to find out what…..”

Yami shot up. Pain shot through his side and he gripped at it, clenching his teeth. Grandpa touched his shoulder carefully.

“Take it easy. It looks like you had a nasty fall.

“We don’t have time,” Yami gasped. He used Grandpa’s help to stand. “We need to call the others. Yugi… Yugi…!”

Grandpa’s face paled, “What happened?”

Tears appeared at the corners of his eyes. There was no stopping it as they fell and he gasped out, “Yugi was taken! Bakura has him!”


	30. Chapter 30

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, no lie. This chapter makes me nervous. Originally, this was chapter 29 and I refer to it as the "Infamous 29" because, literally, two weeks ago, this chapter was COMPLETELY DIFFERENT. That's right. I had to scrap my original chapter and rewrite it completely. This chapter out of all of them scares me the most. I hope I fixed it properly. 
> 
> I would also like to take this chance to thank beartime again for helping me edit. I definitely would've had a lot of problems without the help!

There was nothing but darkness. Yugi’s body felt sore. He was also sure that he was bleeding from several cuts along his body. The monsters had been less than kind as they had dragged him through the darkness and back to… wherever he was. He couldn’t tell. It also didn’t help that he was bound to some kind of chair at both his wrists and ankles and the Millennium Puzzle was nowhere to be found. He gritted his teeth, struggling against the ropes.

A laugh came from the darkness. Yugi froze. A form followed the laugh; it only took a few steps for Bakura to fully appear. Yugi glared.

“Bakura,” he snapped. The boy in front of him had changed. He now wore a dark cloak and his hair stood in all directions. No longer was there a soft demeanor to his face; instead, it was sharp and jeering and, to put it simply, evil. He twirled the puzzle on a raised finger. “Give me back my puzzle!”

“As if,” he snarled. A smirk appeared on his lips, “You’ve made a mistake. You see Yugi, you’re going to _give_ me the puzzle.”

“Not on your life!” Bakura wasn’t fazed. He sucked his teeth and raised his free hand, snapping. The darkness shivered before receding a bit, revealing four forms, all tied up just like him. Yugi’s eyes went wide. Grandpa, Anzu, Jounouchi, and Honda all struggled against their bounds; they tried to scream something to him but he couldn’t understand a thing they said since their mouths were covered. Yugi’s face paled. Bakura laughed again.

“It’ll say it again,” he hissed. “You’re going to give me the puzzle or things might not turn out so well for your loved ones.” He snapped again. The darkness moved again. Instead of backing away, it moved closer to the four of them. Various grotesque monster appeared, reaching out with claws and tongues and other odd appendages. Anzu’s eyes widened. Jounouchi shivered as one licked his exposed face. Grandpa tried to shrink away while Honda squirmed. The monsters kept moving. Yugi looked desperately between them and Bakura. He only sneered, “Make your choice Yugi.”

He bowed his head. “Alright,” he choked out, “Alright, you win.”

Bakura’s smirk widened, “Then say it Yugi.”

With his face pale, Yugi breathed, “I- I give you the Millennium Puzzle Bakura.” The Eye appeared on Bakura’s forehead and the puzzle glowed in the gloom.

That was it.

The puzzle was his.

Bakura laughed again, harder than before and in a moment of clarity, he looked back at Yugi. Without warning, he snapped his fingers again. Yugi watched in complete horror as the four captured humans morphed, changing into shadow monsters that roared and disappeared back into the darkness. Yugi struggled against his bounds again, “You tricked me!”

“Oh Yugi,” he teased. “That’s not all I’m going to do. Your life actually has some value to me still.” Bakura lashed out. His hand connected with Yugi’s face pretty hard. Yugi’s eyes rolled back and his head dropped forward onto his chest. Bakura snickered. He turned back to the shadows before disappearing from sight.

*****

Yami squeezed his hands tightly at his knees. He couldn’t look any of them in the face. Jounouchi slammed his fist on the door frame while Honda mirrored Yami’s expression at the kitchen counter. Grandpa looked tired and older than he ever had before while the Ishtars had expressions varying in degree of anger, frustration, and guilt. Malik, who had been released the day prior, clenched his fists. Anzu wrapped a blanket around Grandpa’s shoulders. She smiled at him, trying to herself together.

“That jerk,” Jounouchi growled, “Wait until I get my hands on him!”

“Like it’s going to be that easy,” Honda snapped.

Jounouchi spun, “I know that! We can’t just leave Yugi in his hands thought!” The two of them glared each other down until Anzu stood.

“Knock it off you two,” she ordered. Honda and Jounouchi humphed but turned away from each other. A gentle hand appeared on Yami’s shoulder. He looked up. Isis smiled down at him sadly.

“Bakura is acting,” she addressed the room. “Which means we have no choice but to move too.” She motioned to Yami. “The Guardian currently poses five out of the seven Millennium Items.”

“Which means that Bakura won’t be able to summon Zorc,” Rishid added. Isis nodded.

“Correct. We still have the upper hand.”

“But how long will we have it,” Malik asked softly. Nobody responded.

Someone cleared their throat. All eyes turned to the door and Yami jumped to his feet. Grandpa looked up surprised as well. Arthur and Rebecca Hopkins stood in the doorway with soft smiles on their faces.

“Doctor Hopkins, Rebecca,” Yami greeted.

“Hello again Guardian,” Hopkins returned, “My, your Japanese has improved significantly. How have you been adjusting?”

Rebecca shot her grandfather a look. She huffed, “We don’t have time Grandpa.”

“There’s always time for a bit of pleasantry- especially in the dark times,” he replied. Rebecca shook her head but he turned, approaching Grandpa. “I’m sure Yugi is alright Sugoroku. After all, he is a Muto.” Grandpa smiled up at him.

Rebecca cleared her throat, “Isis told us what happened and we came straight here from the airport.”

Malik eyed his sister, “I thought they were staying Egypt to study Yami’s tomb?”

“We were,” Hopkins cut in, “but we managed to translate the final part of the tomb’s message.” Rebecca placed her bag on the ground. She dug through it for a second before pulling out a laptop. A few more seconds later, she pulled up some pictures of the tomb’s hieroglyphics. Hopkins moved closer to her. “It seems that there are two ways to stop the return of the darkness: the first is to keep the items sealed away in the tomb.”

“Obviously that one’s not an option anymore,” Honda pointed out. Rebecca leaned her head back to glare at him.

“And who,” she snapped, “are you?” Honda returned the expression. Before he could respond, Yami raised a hand.

“We don’t have time,” he warned. Honda snapped his mouth shut. Yami turned back to Hopkins, “What’s the other way.”

Hopkins cleared his throat, “Yes, well, the only other option is for the Guardian to summon the gods and awaken their true power by using his name.” He stared at Yami. “Have you remember your true name?” Yami licked his lips.

“No, I haven’t,” he answered.

“Damn,” Jounouchi swore. He walked closer to the professor, “This is good and all but we need to save Yugi now.”

Rebecca closed her laptop, “You don’t think we know that?” She motioned to her grandfather. “We’re trying to help! Yugi isn’t the only one in danger! The whole world is. We can’t just go rushing in to anything without some information.” She sighed. “This is the best we could do.”

“It is enough,” Yami assured her. A cellphone suddenly rang and all eyes turned to Isis who pulled it from the pocket of her jacket.

“Kaiba,” she greeted. Pause. “Excellent! Can we expect to see you there?” Pause. “Alright. We’ll meet you there.” She hung up. Her face was brighter than it had been. “Kaiba found Bakura and Yugi. It looks like they’re in downtown Domino.”

Everyone straightened. Honda pumped his fist, “Then what are we waiting for? Let’s go!”

“Wait a moment,” Isis ordered. She stepped forward and all eyes stayed on her. “This is going to be a dangerous battle. Your very lives will be at risk.”

“And that’s supposed to stop us,” Jounouchi asked. Isis slowly closed her eyes.

“No, it is meant to give you a way out.” The three of them shared a look.

“No chance,” Honda said.

“Yugi’s in danger,” Anzu added. “We’re not leaving any of our friends in danger. We’ll fight too.”

“None of you have participated in a shadow game before,” Rishid pointed out.

“So we’ll figure it out,” Jounouchi chirped. He moved past Yami with a smirk on his face. “So what are we waiting around for? Let’s get going’.” Yami hesitated for a moment before he nodded.

“Very well,” Isis agreed. “Before that, we will need to prepare.” Rebecca raised her hand and all eyes turned to her.

“For what it counts,” she said, “I think I have a plan to get Yugi back.”

*****

“I just really feel that we need some tumbleweeds and a flute of some kind playing warbly music,” Jounouchi stated. Honda rolled his eyes, Anzu rolled her eyes, and both had to stop themselves from slapping him in the back of the head. It was a good thing none of the others were in earshot or they definitely would’ve.

“Quit trying to make jokes dude,” Honda snapped. “Not really the time.”

Jounouchi scratched his cheek, “Just trying to lighten the mood.”

Anzu scanned the crowd. “That would work best,” she told him, “if, you know, we weren’t trying stop the _apocalypse_ or something like that.” They were standing in the middle of downtown Domino, right at the city’s center where the cameras had shown Bakura walking. The air was electric. A knife could easily have slice and diced its way through the tension. It wasn’t just their group that felt it either; Jounouchi noticed a couple of people looking around, fiddling with their phones, nervously moving away from the area and, hopefully, out of harms range. The sky was darkening above. Black clouds swirled overhead even though no rain fell.

“I get that but we could all use a laugh right about now.” Jounouchi blinked. Someone _was_ laughing. It echoed throughout the area. “I know what I said was funny but it wasn’t that _funny_.” Honda took a step back.

“I don’t think he’s laughing at your joke,” he pointed. His head snapped up. Standing above them, his arms crossed as he looked down at them, was Bakura, the wind violently whipping around him. His hair looked even wilder than before. His jacket rose a bit, giving him a larger form. They all braced themselves.

“How nice of all of you to show up,” he snarled, “for Lord Zorc’s grand revival!” Yami stepped forward.

“Not if we have anything to say about it,” he challenged. “Give Yugi back!” Bakura was unfazed. He lifted his foot, seemingly stepping into empty air but a portal of darkness opened below him and he sank into, reappearing on the ground in front of him. They blanched. Yami’s face paled. Yugi was in his grip, unconscious and bleeding from several injuries. “Bakura,” Yami growled. The man’s expression didn’t change; instead, it grew wider as he lifted Yugi’s head, placing a knife to his throat.

“I’m sure you can see,” Bakura drawled, “where this is going. Surrender the items or I will end his life.” Bakura’s eyes shot around to the group that seemed to keep growing. Yami’s knuckles tightened on the case he carried. No one said anything.

_What do I do? What can I do?_

“Don’t…,” someone weakly told him. Yami’s eyes opened wide. Yugi’s eyes opened slowly until they were half lidded and Bakura pressed the tip of the knife harder into his skin. Yugi hissed. A tiny trickle of blood appeared and traveled down his neck, soaking into the collar of his shirt. Yugi gritted his teeth for a second before saying stronger, “Don’t do it Yami! I’ll be alright!”

“Yugi,” Yami whispered. He squeezed his eyes shut for a moment before he pulled his arm back, throwing the case between them. All hearts squeezed.

Bakura straightened. Dragging Yugi forward, he kept his eyes on all of them. It was only when he stood over the case did he grab Yugi by the scruff of the neck and flung him away. He landed hard.

“Yugi,” several voices cried at once. Yami ran across the plaza, dropping to his knees to cradle him in his arms, turning him over to check him carefully. He brushed his cheek and then his bangs. There were various cuts all over him but he otherwise looked alright. Yugi’s eyes fluttered. They slowly opened all the way. Yami smiled down at him, squeezing his shoulders.

“Yugi,” he breathed, “Are you alright?”

Yugi returned the smile, “I think so.” Yami nodded.

“Can you stand?”

“Maybe…,” he mumbled. With Yami’s help, the two of them stood. Yami wrapped a hand around his waist and didn’t let him go.

Meanwhile, Bakura’s eyes starred hungrily at the case. He opened it. It didn’t take long for him to process the scene in front of him. Darkness swirled in an angry storm above them, the wind picking up again. A growl tore through his throat as he flung the empty case to the side. “Do you really think this will stop me,” he shouted. “Zorc will still revive!”

“Not if we have anything to say about it,” Jounouchi snapped. He stood behind Yami and Yugi but stepped forward as he spoke. Honda, Anzu, Isis, Rishid, and even Kaiba, who had met the group earlier, stepped up with him.

Bakura laughed, “Do you think you lot will be enough?”

“Stop stalling and call out your monster,” Kaiba ordered. Bakura snickered. He raised his hand to the side. The darkness concentrated behind him, spiraling and forming into a giant monster. It’s torso was bulging. If Diabound had been intimidating before, he was more so now. The group stepped back.

“What the…?”

“That creature….?”

“That can’t be Diabound,” Yugi stuttered.

“Surprised,” Bakura asked. “Diabound has been busy. Growing monster are ravenous.” Yami took a step forward. Yugi let him go, assuring him with a smile that he was alright, as they faced the monster and his master down. Yami silently called for the magic. The Millennium Eye symbol appeared on his forehead but he knew that it wasn’t enough. He was too drained, too tired.

_Please. Give me the strength._

Several points of light suddenly appeared around him. The Millennium Items that had been left at the game shop with those who couldn’t fight, answered his silent call. Yami closed his eyes. It was risky but he didn’t have a choice.

“We will not,” he stated in his native tongue, “Allow the darkness to return.” He held up a hand.

The power flowed through him. Never had he felt so close to the gods and yet… it still wasn’t enough. He could feel Slifer, Obelisk, and Ra rumbling in his mind but there wasn’t enough there to summon them. Instead, he chose the easier route. Yami made a fist with his outstretched hand, “Come forth!”

Six familiar monsters appeared in a blinding light. Gandora rumbled deep in its throat, its tail switching back and forth over the ground. Yugi beamed. The Blue Eyes roared and Kaiba tried not to look proud. Two-Headed Jackal pounded his sword against his shield and Spiria bowed briefly to Isis. Then, there were two new monsters: the first was a red and black dragon that was smaller than both Gandora and Blue Eyes, but just as intimidating to look at.

Jounouchi stepped forward, “Is this…my partner?” It turned its head enough to eye him. A low, whiny growl came from its throat and he blinked. “Red Eyes… Black Dragon?” It nodded. Jounouchi smirked and pumped his fist, “Awesome! I like it!” They turned back to the battle.

The second l monster was a soldier wearing a face mask. He had several pieces of weaponry on his body and belt of bullets around his torso, coming off of his right shoulder. He turned, bowing to Honda a bit who only scratched his head and chuckled in surprise.

Anzu looked around confused. It didn’t appear as if she had gotten a monster to battle with until the Dark Magician Girl floated down to her.

“Hi there! It’s nice to meet you!” Anzu blinked.

“Uh… likewise,” she agreed. She nodded and then floated back a little.

“I hope you don’t mind that I’m partnering with you,” the magician apologized, “It’s just… my master and I want to help him out but having to battle with two monsters attached to your soul can be troublesome.” Anzu smiled.

“I understand. I think.” She turned back to face Bakura. “Let’s just make sure we do a good job at ending this.”

“Right,” the other confirmed, raising her wand.

“You’re out matched Bakura,” Yugi challenged.

“I wouldn’t be too sure.” Bakura pointed towards them.  “Go Diabound!” All the monsters surged forward. Diabound easily meet the three dragons with his tail while the others flew around them. The Dark Magician Girl lead the way, swinging her wand to tussle with one of his hands. She grunted against the blow. The Cyber Soldier started his attack from the ground, shooting towards his torso. The Dark Magician flew up above the scene, raising his staff for an attack. Spiria and Two-Headed Jackal managed to loop on to his second arm. Diabound screamed. The Dark Magician released his attack, the orb that appeared exploding on his face.

The group let out a cheer.

Their excitement didn’t last long. The smoke cleared from his face but he appeared to be completely uninjured. He opened his hands, grabbing the Dark Magician Girl and Spiria. They struggled. Isis and Anzu gasped, their arms locked to their side as they struggled to breathe. The tail knocked back the three dragons which in turn sent their masters flying as well. Yami turned in surprise.

“Yugi! Jounouchi!” He gritted his teeth, growling a bit. They groaned. Yugi pushed himself up, shaking his head, sending some dust and debris flying off his head. Jounouchi sat up and held his head. Kaiba, of course, landed without an issues and was already ordering the Blue Eyes back into battle. Yami eyed his flight; the dragon flew up to the snakehead and grabbed it by the throat.

“Kaiba,” he shouted. Kaiba eyed him. Yami nodded to him and Kaiba narrowed his eyes but pointed, ordering his dragon to fly to the right. The Dark Magician noticed what they were doing. He came down, aiding in the tug. They managed to get the monster spinning. He opened his hands to release the two he had caught, slamming his now free hands into the buildings around them. Rubble fell. The Dark Magician Girl and Spiria flew out of reach and their masters hunched over, trying to regain their breaths. The Dark Magician flew up to the two of them.

“Are you alright,” he asked. The Dark Magician girl shook her head from her doubled-over position before straightening. “Good, we need to tie that snake down. It’s causing a lot of problems.”

“Got it,” she chirped. The two of them went down.

Yugi tugged at Yami’s arm, “What’s Bakura doing?” He dropped his eyes from the battle above. Bakura stood on the other side of the plaza, hands extended. His eyes were closed and he seemed to be speaking rapidly. Yami’s face fell. He was definitely incanting but what, he wasn’t sure exactly what. The Millennium Items quivered around him. They faltered from their hovering position around him, moving ever so slightly towards the thief.

“He’s summoning Zorc,” Yami declared. The group blanched.

“I thought he needed all the items in his possession for that,” Honda grunted as he doubled over from a hit.

“It might just be enough that they’re all in the same area,” Isis answered.

Yami reached out quickly for the nearest item. He wasn’t quick enough. They flew off towards Bakura who didn’t let up on his incantation. Yami growled.

He stumbled forward after them.

Yugi raised a hand to stop him, “Yami! Wait!”

He jumped over some of the fallen debris, scrambling, trying to reach it. Jumping, his fingers brushed the key.

As he came down, Yami was surprised to see Diabound suddenly there.

His eyes went wide. Everyone shouted but Yugi was the loudest as the monster brought his massive fist around in a direct shot at him.

The Dark Magician flew quickly, putting his body between the two. Diabound’s fist connected to his chest. Both monster and master cried out as they went flying and the Dark Magician weakly wrapped Yami in his arms before they connected to the building behind them, leaving a crater in the wall. They fell.  The Dark Magician disappeared in a slow trickle of light, just feet from the ground. Yami landed hard against the concrete.

He didn’t move.


	31. Chapter 31

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is it guys. My last update for this story!

“Yami,” Yugi screamed. He started to run towards him but a hand on his arm kept him from moving. Seto Kaiba held him. Yugi jerked, trying to get out of the grip. “Let me go!”

“Would you focus,” he growled. “Your boyfriend is going to be alright but we have bigger problems.” Yugi turned. Bakura was practically screaming at this point and as he finished, the Millennium Items were near invisible, spinning in the sky as pure darkness and lightning crackled between them. The wind picked up. They had to cover their faces to keep themselves safe; Gandora dropped its tail, anchoring Yugi, Rishid, and Isis to the ground. Red Eyes helped Anzu, Jounouchi, and Honda while Blue Eyes growled at the sky while it covered Kaiba. Bakura laughed maniacally, louder than the wind.

"Return Lord Zorc," he shouted, "Use my spirit and the spirit of this monster to make your return perfect!"

The light grew more intense. Yugi covered his face with his arm, trying to see what was happening. He couldn't see anything outside of vague forms. He saw maybe Bakura rise up into the air. Diabound disappeared as well. Both went up into the portal created by the items but after several seconds, something came out of it. It was massive. Two legs emerged, followed by a massive torso, and two heads: one that extended out from his stomach and the other that looked like it was ripped from the pages of some horror movie. There were two wings on its back. Its tail switched, knocking into the buildings around like they weren’t even there. What few people remained in the area screamed, covering their heads, trying to escape the carnage.

“I… am… FREE,” the creature shouted. It spread its massive wings, flapping them once and destroying more of the buildings around them. The Dark Magician Girl covered her head and Spiria flew down to hide behind Gandora. He Cyber Soldier ducked down behind a giant piece of rubble.

Yugi's face paled. Yami was still out in the open! He didn’t respond to the carnage around him; he had to be protected! Yugi sprinted to Yami, running with everything he had.

"Woah," he cried when he was scooped up. Looking up, he found Gandora holding him, flying quickly to where the fallen boy laid and once they arrived, Yugi jumped down, immediately covering Yami with his whole body. The world went dark. Gandora ducked its head, folding its wings around itself as it protected itself and the two tiny humans underneath him.

 _Please_ , Yugi prayed, _come back Yami_!

*****

He felt like he was floating.

The world was black and he muses that this is what the end of the world is like. To think that he died after getting a second chance at life! The irony of it all.

Yami's eyes slowly opened and he was surprised to find a person standing in front of him. He blinked, recognizing the elder man's face immediately. His own lit up, "Siamun!"

He was wearing his traditional outfit, a simple robe with his tall purple hat and a colorful shawl draped from his left shoulder. His face reminded him of Grandpa for some reason but he pushed the idea to the side; he started forward to catch him in a hug and he returned it gratefully. After a few seconds, they broke apart. "It's good to see you doing so well," Siamun mused. "We were so worried about how you would handle a strange world."

"It's been hard," he admitted, "But I've made some amazing friends and I've learned so much about this new world I live in." He nodded.

"We never doubted you for a second. None of us." Yami looked up. They were surrounded now by the spirits of the dead and all of the faces that he recognized, friends and family, were there. Mahad, Mana, Set, Shada, Isis, and even....

"Father," he choked out. "Heba." Akhenamkhanen smiled at him and held out his hands. Yami rushed forward, giving him a tight embrace just like he did with his mentor. After a second, he broke apart from him, reaching for his brother. He held him out at arm's length.

"Look at you," Heba smiled, "You've grown into a fine pharaoh." Yami choked.

"I was never meant to be pharaoh." He squeezed his brother's arms. "You were always the one. Despite the birth order." Heba shook his head.

"No, my brother. You were the one everyone looked to. You were always my heart and soul and even, my courage." He reached up, cupping his face and pulling him down a bit so he could kiss his forehead. "Without you, I would never have been the pharaoh I was during my life; I am who I am because of you." Heba eyed him concerned. “I think its time you learned the truth.”

“I’ve learned enough,” Yami assured him. Heba shook his head.

“You deserve more,” Heba whispered. He waved his hand to the side. A portal of light appeared and in it, the kingdom that he remembered and loved. How long go it had been! Yami stepped closer.

He recognized the scene. It was a starry night, relatively peaceful, except for a raging fire at the gate of the palace. People ran and screamed. They tried to escape. Some were capture instantly. Many were killed. Yami swallowed hard, a feeling of guilt shot through him, but he kept watching, clenching his fists. Heba appeared in the scene. He shouted out orders as soldiers swarmed around him. He turned to Shada who stood next to him, “Summon the monsters. We will hold them at the gate.” Shada bowed his head.

“I am sorry my pharaoh,” he stated. “We can only summon one monster each.” Heba eyed him.

“Your item should be able to allow more.”

“You are correct but I do not have it. None of the Guardians do anymore.” Heba narrowed his eyes.

“I will expect an explanation when this is over. For now, have those that can summon the shadow monsters send them into battle. Keep them at the gate.” Shada bowed again.

“At once.” He disappeared into the chaos to direct the mages into summoning their creatures. A hand suddenly came down on Heba’s shoulder and he looked up at Mahad. A frown appeared on his face.

“You should’ve gone to safety,” Heba sighed.

“And leave you to fight alone? I refuse.” The two shared a smirk. A shout caused them to turn, only to find Mana running straight for them, her wand held tightly in her hands. She doubled over as she stopped beside them. “Mana! What are you doing here?”

“I- I can’t,” she panted, “I can’t just leave you two alone.” Mahad sighed. He put a hand to his forehead and shook his head.

“Fine but stay…”

He never got to finish. An explosion destroyed the wall beside them. Mahad saw this. He quickly grabbed Heba’s arm, flinging him into Mana. Both of them fell. Heba shook his head as they righted themselves. Mana gasped. She covered her mouth, tears appearing in her eyes as they starred widely at Mahad. Heba faced him.

“Keep him safe,” he whispered. The explosion wrapped him in fire and dust but it merely bounced off of the shield he had covered them in.

“Mahad,” Heba screamed. Mana was crying softly. As the shield faded, he scrambled to his feet and over a pile of a rubble. There was no sign of Mahad anywhere. Heba squeezed his eyes and fists. When he opened them, he glared at the hole in the wall, still covered by some dust and smoke.

A figure appeared in the shadow. Heba pulled a dagger from his belt, holding it at the ready.

The man who appeared walked hunched over. He wore only a loin cloth with a red tunic on his shoulders. There was gold on his neck and arms and his white hair was wild. His right eye had a scar that extended through it and down to his jawline. He straightened.

“Who are you,” Heba demanded. The man smirked.

“I am the ghost of those that were wronged,” he hissed. Heba raised his weapon.”

“You are a dead man! How dare you attack the Imperial Palace!”

The man sucked his teeth, “The royal family be damned. I will burn this place until only the ashes remain!” He lunged then.

Heba closed the portal. Yami blinked for a second before reaching for him, wrapping his hands on the upper parts of his arms desperately, “What happened?”

Heba smiled softly, “We battled. The thief got the advantage on me but Mahad’s spirit returned and we pushed him back. The battle wasn’t through that night. It took us months to finally end the rebellion but, by then, he had disappeared. Siamun,” he nodded to the older man, “thought that he had attacked only to fuel some black magic but, since we couldn’t find him, there was nothing we could do. We repaired the city. We mourned both father’s and yours deaths. I was devastated but knew that I had to rule the kingdom. I vowed to make the best version of our kingdom I could.” He smiled at him. “I wanted to create a place that you would be proud of.”

Pride swelled in his chest. Yami released his arms, choosing to wrap him tightly in a hug again. Heba returned the gestured. He buried his face into the crook of his neck and revealed in the feel of having his brother with him again.

“I have always,” Yami whispered, “been proud of you.” Heba squeezed. After a few seconds, he pushed Yami back at arm’s length.

“It’s time my brother,” he smiled, “It’s time for you to remember and to end this darkness. You may not have the items but we will help you connect to the gods.” Heba looked around at the spirits who all nodded to the both of them. Yami wiped the corner of his eyes.

“I’ll make sure to save this world,” he promised.

Siamun nodded. Akhenamkhanen nodded as well. His father reached out, cupping his face. Yami’s eyes went wide. He spoke calmly to him, calling him by his name as the world whited out.

*****

Yami opened his eyes slowly. There was an odd mix of heat and cool air hitting him; he realized that there was a weight on his chest and sitting up quickly, he grabbed Yugi, knocking dust and debris off of them both. "Yugi," he cried. The boy groaned, his eyes fluttering. There were scrapes and bruises on his face and he brushed his bangs back, seeing that, thankfully, it wasn't much worse than that. He looked around. The buildings that had been standing tall were now diminished; the sky was darkened, and all around them laid the various bodies of their friends. None of the monsters remained. He staggered to his feet, holding the unconscious Yugi gently. His face fell.

Zorc stood above him, laughing. A groan entered his ear and he turned his attention back to find Yugi waking a bit.

His eyes fluttered and he softly asked, "Yami?"

"I'm sorry," he cooed. Yugi smiled up at him weakly, squeezing his arm.

"We tried... our best..."

"Shhhh," he whispered, "You did perfectly fine. I'm going to put an end to this and then... and then...." He paused, unsure of what to say. He wasn’t sure what was next. Yugi sighed happily, closing his eyes again.

"We'll talk... after this." Yami nodded but Yugi was already out again. He laid him down carefully. He straightened, eyes glaring up at the monster. Zorc finally noticed him.

"Ah so the true Pharaoh finally emerges," he sneered. "Just in time for my grand conquering of this world."

"There is no way," he stated in his native tongue. "I will let that happen! I am the Guardian of the Items and I will defeat you."

"You have no power. You have no friends." Yami didn’t pause as his eyes flashed brilliant red. The Millennium Eye appeared on his forehead again and he raised his hand to the skies.

"I will always have both," he challenged, "I pray to thee, guardians of the heavens, and beseech to thee to appear to this world. Bring forth salvation to a world of darkness in dire need! Appear Obelisk the Tormentor, Slifer the Sky Dragon, and the Winged Dragon of Ra!"

Zorc backed up, "What!?"

The sky tore apart. The three gods, Obelisk, Slifer, and Ra, appeared from the place were space no longer existed and they came with a mighty scream upon their lips. They stood before Zorc, their bodies exuding a brilliant light that pushed the darkness back, ready for their battle. He pointed a hand forward. Yami wasn't finished yet.

"I refuse to let the darkness reign on this world," he growled,” I use the name of the Pharaoh, the god who walks among men, to send the darkness of this world back from where it came." The demon physically paled. "My name is... Atem!"

The world went silent. The Millennium Items, darkened and discarded by the one who had used them to return to this world, suddenly lit up again. They rose into the air as they had previously but now they circled the three guardians of the gods who roared, looking to the heavens. Faster and faster and faster. The three bodies dissolved into millions of points of lights that swirled with the items. They reformed, solidifying, until a new god appeared. This new one was all golden with wings in a head piece that framed her masked face. She wore an elegant tunic that did nothing to hide her power which glowed with a warm, golden hue.  Horakhty was the creator of light and Zorc knew this as he shrunk away.

"No,” Zorc growled, “This is not possible.... I was so close!" Yami, Atem, narrowed his eyes.

"No more. The darkness will never rule this world and even if it returns, I will always be here to protect it." Horakhty raised her hands and her spread her massive wings. A blinding, radiant light shot from her.

Zorc screamed.

Atem squeezed his fists.

The battle was over.


	32. Chapter 32

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the end! Thank you all so much for the support over the last couple of days as I posted this story.
> 
> Once more I want to thank tsukimilog for being my awesome responder (Still check out the response piece here: https://tsukimilog.tumblr.com/post/176660189888/tsukimilog-read-from-right-to-left-japanese ). I'd also like to thank the amazing mods of the Yugioh BB that helped make this event as successful as it has been. Please make sure to read all of the other stories posted to this collection!
> 
> Enjoy!

Yugi sucked in a breath. Something warm washed over his body and he felt someone grab his hand, gently cradling his head. His eyes fluttered open.

Yami was smiling down at him, his face flushed from the recent battle. The whole area was bathed in light and he could see his friends picking themselves up and looking around, in a bit of a daze but otherwise alright. Jounouchi and Honda clapped hands excitedly. Isis and a Rishid shared a look. Anzu smiled at Kaiba and offered a hand, which he smirked at before surprisingly taking it. It was a general celebration all around. Yami squeezed his hand, "Welcome back."

"The same to you," he returned. "Did we win?" He nodded.

"Yes and that's not all," he beamed. "I finally found it. I remember. My name, my real name, is Atem." Yugi blinked. It took a second for him to register what he was hearing but when he did, he shot up wrapping his arms tightly around his neck. Atem hugged him back.

"Of course you remember how to win during the battle," Kaiba grunted. Jounouchi went to punch his arm but he dodged it which sent the blonde tumbling. Jounouchi groaned, rubbing his head.

"Awww leave them be Kaiba. Can't you see their having a moment?" Kaiba humphed.

"Whatever." Yugi rolled his eyes. Typical Kaiba. He turned back to Atem, pushing him back a bit so he could cup his face.

"Atem," he breathed, "it suits you." A shiver went up the other's spine and he nodded, standing and holding out a hand to Yugi which he took so that they were standing together.

"Pharaoh Atem," a new soothing voice called. The whole group of them turned their faces up at the goddess who was looking down at them, the light still radiating from around her. She was possibly the most beautiful sight any of them had ever seen. Even though her face was more like a mask than anything, it was easy to tell that she was smiling. "You have done well. Your role as the guardian has been fulfilled." Yugi froze at the words. He took Atem's hand, squeezing it, afraid of what was about to be said. Horakhty looked down and motioned to something, raising her hand which brought the Millennium Items floating up as well. "These items have served their purpose as well."

"What will happen to them great goddess," Isis asked. She turned speak to her.

"I shall remove them from this world," she promised, "as a means of keeping the darkness from returning in this way." She turned back to Atem. "To you, Pharaoh Atem, I offer a place next to those in your heart."

She motioned downward. Underneath her where she hovered, the spirits that he had spoken to earlier returned. Atem's face twisted. He swallowed hard, squeezing Yugi's hand before looking between him and his family. They smiled at him. He took a step towards them, his hand becoming oddly cold from the sudden lack of weight as he let Yugi go. His heart felt heavy.

"Atem, wait," Yugi cried out. He turned, finding the boy standing there, shaking, clutching to at his chest. He walked forward, bowing to the goddess. While his face was down, he pleaded, "Please, I beg you, let Ya- Atem stay in this world." She leaned her head to the side.

"But he is not of this time and his loved ones await him."

"Please," Yugi begged, "he... he never got his life in Egypt and I... we can give him a new one." He paused, the words catching in his throat a bit, "Hasn't he already sacrificed enough for one lifetime?"

Atem curled his fists. He really wanted to stay but he knew... he knew that the punishment of the gods was not fulfilled. Suddenly, a pair of a hands wrapped around his middle. Everyone was surprised to find Heba hugging his brother, burying his face into his back. He said something. What he said, only him and Atem knew but the latter’s eyes grew wide as he heard it and, before he could respond, his twin, the former pharaoh of Egypt, released him. He stood straight and shoved him back into Yugi who just barely caught him.

"He's right," he announced to everyone. "Atem, you've already lost so much. I know this is hard but we can wait another life time for you." He winked to Yugi, "Besides, you two are so disgustingly in love, how could we dare break you apart again?" The two of them looked at each other, then away, their faces aflame. Heba laughed.

Horakhty bowed her head, "Your wish has been heard." The goddess leaned her head to the side. “There is only one more thing.” She waved her hand again and behind the group, a swirling series of light came together until they formed a shape. That shape became a person. Yugi’s face lit up.

“It’s Bakura,” he cheered. Bakura blinked. He staggered, looking at the scene.

“Where am I,” he asked. Jounouchi playfully grabbed him around the neck and the two of them hunched over a bit.

“I wouldn’t worry about it right now,” the blonde teased. Bakura continued to blink but began to laugh along with him.

Atem faced Horakhty, “I don’t understand. How is Bakura here?”

“Your brother was correct,” she said softly, “when he told you that the so-called Thief King used black magic to disappear. Zorc needed the souls of those they killed that night to make his servant immortal so that one day, he might bring about his resurrection. However, the magic came with a price. The Thief King lived as nothing more than a parasite, traveling from host to host, and waiting until your tomb was discovered and he could begin the process of reviving his master.” She tilted her head. “The Bakura you see before you is nothing more than a victim to his parasitic ways. I am sure that you all will help him readjust to life on his own.”

“Of course we will,” Yugi promised. “He’s our friend after all.” The goddess bowed her head.

“It is time,” she stated. “My blessing to all of you.” Atem’s eyes dropped to his family. They smiled at him brightly as all the spirits began to disappear into drops of light. Heba waved to the  them as his body, along with the goddess, the items, and the rest of his family, disappeared in a golden sparkle.

Atem watched until the last drop of their essence was gone. Yugi took his hand. He sighed happily, looking down at him, the thrill of new life rushing through him as he realized that this was just the start of a new story.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cheers guys! I'll see you in my next fic!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy the rest!


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